A firefighter who served with both the Jersey City Fire Department and Old Bridge Fire District 3 was arrested at his Monroe Township home on Tuesday, October 20, after investigators executed a search warrant, Middlesex County Prosecutor Linda Estremera and Monroe Township Police Chief Griffin Banos announced. Drew Martucci, 27, of Monroe, was taken into custody without incident.
Source: NJ Urban News
The investigation began with a cyber tip from the New Jersey State Police to the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office, prosecutors said. Detective Ken McGarry of the office's Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Unit led the investigation. Prosecutors allege that Martucci represented himself as a minor online to produce child sexual abuse material (CSAM). The allegation has not been tested in court.
Source: Englebrook Independent News
Nine counts, including first-degree production
Martucci is charged with nine counts: first-degree production of CSAM; second-degree manufacturing of CSAM; second-degree attempted manufacturing of CSAM; second-degree distribution of CSAM; third-degree endangering the welfare of a child; third-degree possession of CSAM; third-degree invasion of privacy; and third-degree distributing obscene material to a child, on two counts, NJ Urban News reported from the prosecutor's announcement.
Source: NJ Urban News
He is being held at the Middlesex County Adult Correctional Facility pending a pre-trial detention hearing. Both employers moved the same day: Jersey City and Old Bridge Fire District 3 each suspended him without pay immediately, according to the announcement.
Source: Englebrook Independent News
The prosecutor's office credited the FBI's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force and FBI Newark, the Monroe Township Police Department, the Middlesex County ICAC Task Force, the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office — including an electronic-storage-detection K-9 — the Sayreville Police Department and the Maryland State Police with assisting in the investigation, Englebrook Independent News reported.
Source: Englebrook Independent News
Prosecutors have NOT publicly disclosed the number of alleged victims, their ages, or the online platforms involved, and Awaaz Punjab is not speculating on any of those details. The charges are allegations: Martucci is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Ken McGarry of the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office at 732-745-3140.
What is solid
- Arrest on Tuesday, October 20, 2026 at his Monroe Township home after a search warrant, announced by the Middlesex County Prosecutor and Monroe Township Police Chief
- Employed as a Jersey City firefighter and an Old Bridge Fire District 3 firefighter; suspended without pay by both
- Held at the Middlesex County Adult Correctional Facility pending a pre-trial detention hearing
What is only claimed
- The allegation that he posed as a minor online to produce CSAM — a prosecutor's allegation, not proven in court
- The nine criminal counts — charges only at this stage