As Prank, Man Threatens to Burn Self in Elevator

WILDWOOD – Wildwood Police and Fire personnel were dispatched to a motel located on the 3200 block Atlantic Avenue Aug. 28 at approximately 8:30 p.m. for the report of a subject attempting to set himself on fire. According to multiple 911 calls this department received, a subject inside an elevator had poured gasoline onto his body and was attempting to ignite the liquid with a lighter.  
Responding units found that the subject, Austin Gaile, 19, from New York was performing a prank that was being recorded with the intention of posting the video on a social media website and that the liquid he had poured onto his body from a gasoline container was in fact water. Gaile was ultimately arrested and his video recording devices were secured as evidence. At the time of his arrest, Gaile was additionally found to possess marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
During the ensuing investigation conducted by the Wildwood Police Department Detective Division, it was learned that a total of eight individuals were inside the closed elevator car at the time Gaile performed the prank, including two 3-year-old children. All occupants of the elevator believed that Gaile’s prank was real and all felt that their lives were in danger at the time of the incident, leaving several visibly shaken well after emergency personnel were on scene.
Gaile was charged with false public alarm, a crime of the second degree, two counts of endangering the welfare of a child, each count being a crime of the third degree, possession of controlled dangerous substance (CDS) – marijuana under 50 grams, a disorderly persons offense, and possession of CDS paraphernalia, also a disorderly persons offense.
Wildwood Municipal Court Judge Dorothy Garrabrant authorized a warrant for the indictable charges and set bail at $90,000 full cash, no ten percent. Gaile was unable to post bail and was lodged in the Cape May County Correctional Center.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty. This report is based on information received from law enforcement.