A 66-year-old Upper Saddle River man is accused of paying two Rumson men to set fire to his own Lake Road home, a blaze that grew into a four-alarm inferno and drew firefighters from multiple towns in May 2025. Emad E. Gerges, Anthony V. Coviello and Joseph Vulpis are now all facing charges in what the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office calls an arson-for-hire scheme, with the case stretching from a fire with no determined cause to arrests more than a year later.
The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office announced the arrests of Coviello, 54, Gerges, 66, and Vulpis, 62, in connection with the investigation, according to the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office. Gerges lives in Upper Saddle River, while Coviello and Vulpis are both from Rumson, as reported by Patch. Investigators allege Gerges hired Coviello and Vulpis to set fire to the home on Lake Road, per the same outlet.
Flames Engulfed the House Within Minutes
On May 16, 2025, at approximately 2:23 p.m., the Upper Saddle River Police Department and Upper Saddle River Fire Department responded to a residential structure fire on Lake Road, the prosecutor's office said. First responders arrived to find the residence already engulfed in flames, according to the same release. The Daily Voice reported that firefighters from Upper Saddle River and neighboring towns worked to extinguish the blaze.
The fire quickly escalated to four alarms, requiring additional firefighting resources, according to the Upper Saddle River Fire Department. Because the area lacks hydrants, crews had to call in tankers from multiple mutual aid departments to maintain a water supply, the fire department said. No injuries were reported during the incident, the department added. At the time, the fire's cause and origin were classified as undetermined, per the Patch report.
A Tip Reopened the Case Nearly a Year Later
The investigation sat unresolved until the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office Arson Squad received information about the fire from the Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office and Rumson Police Department on April 27, according to the Patch article. That tip prompted investigators to open a new line of inquiry into what had happened inside the Lake Road house eleven months earlier. Investigators ultimately alleged that Coviello and Vulpis entered the home and used a homemade ignitor and accelerant to set fire to the attic, the report states.
Daily Voice reported that property records indicate Gerges owned or previously owned the Lake Road property. The house was listed for sale in February 2026 and sold for $825,000 four months later, in June, according to the same report.
Arrests Came in Stages Exactly Two Weeks Apart
Coviello was arrested at his Rumson home on October 2, while Vulpis surrendered to police in Englishtown the same day, Patch reported. Both men were each charged with first-degree arson for hire, second-degree aggravated arson, second-degree conspiracy to commit aggravated arson, third-degree arson, third-degree criminal mischief and fourth-degree failure to control or report a fire, according to the outlet.
Gerges was arrested on Friday in Saddle River, with assistance from Saddle River police, per the same report. He was charged with first-degree arson for hire and second-degree conspiracy to commit aggravated arson. All three men were taken to the Bergen County Jail, according to Patch. Gerges later appeared in Superior Court in Hackensack and was released pending further court proceedings.
