Bucks County man on bail in arson case charged after police find 20 guns and meth in his home

A Bucks County man who was out on bail awaiting trial for arson now faces drug and weapons charges, after police said a search of his home turned up 20 firearms and roughly a pound of methamphetamine.

Charles Vandenberg was taken into custody Nov. 4 and faces a long list of felony counts involving drugs and guns, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported, citing Bensalem Public Safety Director William McVey. 6abc reported his age as 50; the Inquirer and NBC10 said 51. 6abc and the Inquirer said he lives in Croydon, while NBC10 placed the home in Bensalem Township.

The weapons included five shotguns, nine rifles and six handguns, 6abc reported, and investigators also seized ammunition, a protective vest, pills and paraphernalia. According to the station, one handgun had a drum magazine and no serial number. Police allege Vandenberg ran a network supplying methamphetamine throughout the county.

Prior drug possession convictions made it illegal for Vandenberg to have guns, the Inquirer reported, citing court records. The paper said an arrest affidavit states he acknowledged to detectives that the seized items belonged to him. "He's a guy that cannot have one gun, let alone 20, a drug dealer," McVey said, according to NBC10.

The outlets gave somewhat different starting points for the probe. The Inquirer said it began in July when a low-level drug arrest pointed police toward Vandenberg, while NBC10 traced it to a traffic stop in Bensalem Township last summer. NBC10 also reported that police think other people took part, and that the guns are being checked for their origins and any links to other crimes.

Before this arrest, Vandenberg had been released in an August 2025 arson case; the Inquirer reported he posted 10 percent of a $350,000 bail. Accounts of that case vary. 6abc said he is accused of torching a car belonging to the mother of his child, with the flames destroying her house. The Inquirer and NBC10 said police allege he took part in a scheme to steal drugs in which a co-defendant lit a van on fire and the blaze reached a neighboring home.

According to the Inquirer, three firefighters were injured, and a volunteer fire captain later died from complications of a broken leg suffered in a fall at his station. NBC10 described the official's death as resulting from injuries at the fire. No charges were filed over the death, outlets reported. The arson case has not been resolved.

Vandenberg is now jailed without bail. District Attorney Joe Khan said prosecutors requested that under a new policy aimed at defendants seen as dangerous, adding that such people "shouldn't be able to buy your way out of trouble," according to 6abc and the Inquirer. The Inquirer said it was unclear whether he had a lawyer.

Compiled by True News from reporting by 6abc Action News, The Philadelphia Inquirer and NBC10 Philadelphia. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/963