FANWOOD – A former Sergeant at the now defunct Union County Jail has been arrested on murder charges in connection with a house fire on Kempshall Terrace that claimed the life of an 82-year-old Fanwood resident earlier this year.
According to reports by the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, William Ahle, 70, of Fanwood, is being charged with first-degree murder, first-degree felony murder, first-degree burglary and second-degree aggravated arson in relation to the death of his neighbor, Virginia Cranwell, on July 25.
Police responded to reports of a house fire at approximately 1:37 a.m. on the night in question. The victim was found deceased upon their arrival.
A witness, identified at the time as Matthew Ahle told reporters from ABC News and other outlets that his father, William, had attempted to rescue the woman after realizing that her house was on fire while out walking his dog.
“An investigation led to the identification of Ahle as the suspect,” Union County Prosecutor William Daniel said via press release Wednesday, “Fire officials later determined the cause of the fire to be an intentional act. The Union County Medical Examiner’s Office officially ruled the death a homicide.”
William Ahle retired from his position with the Union County Police Department in 2013 and is currently collecting a monthly pension valued at $5,832.
According to tax records, Ahle and Cranwell had been neighbors on Kempshall Terrace since the mid 1990s.
Requests to the Union County Prosecutor’s Office for additional information were not returned at the time of publication.
