Five Year New Jersey Arson Saga Comes To A Close

The flames that consumed the Country Barrel Inn in Hamilton blazed so brightly that April morning nearly five years ago that one neighbor awoke thinking the sun was shining.

But it was only 3:30 a.m. and just the beginning of what would turn out to be the biggest arson-for-profit probe in Mercer County history.

From the ashes of the Country Barrel fire, which had been a local landmark for more than 65 years, investigators would unravel a string of clues that ultimately would link six fires and a ring of four people in a $500,000 fraud scheme.

Today, the admitted mastermind of that ring, Marc Rossi, is scheduled to be sentenced in Mercer County Court. Rossi, 41, a former county detective turned insurance adjuster, faces up to 10 years in prison.

For investigators, the sentencing will mark the end of a long and winding probe that led them from charred houses and businesses in Hamilton and Trenton to a Florida swamp.

Click Here To Read Entire Story Arson Scheme Saga Comes To A Close