Most Popular Arson Headlines This Year
The most viewed headlines from our Arson Topic Page over the last year.
#1 Former Florida Fire Captain Charged With Padding Living Expenses on Citizens Claim
Jun 12 2024 // A retired south Florida fire captain has been arrested for insurance fraud, charged with vastly overstating the number of nights he was forced to stay in a resort hotel while his home was under repair. Florida’s...
#2 Man Charged With Arson in Colorado Wildfire That Destroyed 29 Homes
Sep 16 2024 // A Colorado man was charged with arson after an investigation into a wildfire this summer that destroyed 29 homes and caused more than $30 million in property damage, authorities said. Jason Alexander Hobby, 49, was...
#3 Ohio Ex-Police Officer Sentenced for Starting 26 Arson Fires in Wayne National Forest
Feb 21 2025 // A former Ohio fire department administrator and police officer was sentenced in federal court here to 18 months in prison for starting dozens of arson fires in Wayne National Forest. James A. Bartels, 52, of Rio Grande,...
#4 Man Torches Tesla Chargers in South Carolina But Catches His Clothes on Fire
Mar 13 2025 // NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — A man burned three Tesla chargers in a South Carolina parking lot and also apparently inadvertently set his clothes on fire, police said. The man spray-painted “long live the...
#5 Woman Found Guilty of Arson After Trying to Burn 3 Homes in Hamptons
Jan 31 2025 // A jury found an East Quogue, New York woman guilty of arson for attempting to set three homes on fire in Hampton Bays in November 2023. Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney said that Amanda Burnside is due...
#6 Former North Carolina Volunteer Fire Chief Charged with Embezzling $155,300
Oct 30 2024 // A former volunteer fire chief in North Carolina has been charged with embezzling almost $155,300 from his department by falsifying time sheets. State Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey said in a statement that Brian Jason...
#7 Man Charged With Arson, Insurance Fraud Related to Fire at His Home
Dec 31 2024 // A Vermont man has been charged with first degree arson and insurance fraud for allegedly setting fire to his own home in Stamford. The Stamford Fire Department responded to a fire on Mill Road on the morning of December...
#8 22-Year-Old Charged with Arson in Connection to Indianapolis Home Fire
Mar 26 2025 // The Marion, County Indiana Prosecutor’s Office filed arson charges with Intent to fraud against 22 year-old Gurpreet Singh, the Indianapolis Fire Department announced this week. On April 22nd, 2024, the Indianapolis...
#9 California Fire Agency Employee Arrested on Suspicion of Starting 5 Blazes
Sep 23 2024 // A California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection employee was arrested on suspicion he started five brush fires in Northern California in recent weeks, officials said. Robert Hernandez, 38, was arrested at the...
#10 Update: Long Island Brush Fires Contained; 2 Firefighters Injured; Arson Probe Underway
Mar 9 2025 // Four brush fires that broke out over the weekend on Long Island are being investigated as possible arsons. The brush fires that were driven by 35 mph winds were contained on Sunday by first responders before they could...
#11 Update on New Jersey Wildfire: Suspect Charged With Arson
Apr 24 2025 // New Jersey officials announced that a 19-year old man has been charged with arson in connection with the Jones Road wildfire that started on April 22 and has spread throughout the southern Ocean County area. Joseph Kling...
#12 Two Former New York Fire Chiefs Face Bribery Charges Tied to Safety Inspections
Sep 17 2024 // Two former chiefs of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) have been charged with bribery and corruption for allegedly expediting access to fire safety inspections for preferred customers in exchange for...
#13 Nevada Man Charged in Connection with Violent Tesla Arson in Las Vegas
Mar 28 2025 // A Las Vegas resident appeared in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, Nevada, to face federal charges related to an arson at a Tesla collision business. Paul Hyon Kim, 36, was charged by criminal complaint with one count of...
#14 Massachusetts Police Charge Man With Intentionally Setting Brush Fires
Nov 19 2024 // A man was arrested on suspicion of intentionally setting brush fires in Massachusetts during a time of dry conditions that have led to blazes throughout the Northeast, police said Monday. Police said they arrested the...
#15 Fire That Destroyed Historic Georgia Home Found to Be Arson
Jul 3 2024 // DARIEN, Ga. (AP) — A man has been charged with starting a fire that destroyed a nearly century-old home on the site of a coastal Georgia rice plantation that’s associated with the largest slave auction in U.S....
#16 New York State Imposes Burn Ban; Brush Fire in Manhattan; Arrest in Medford Fire
Nov 14 2024 // New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced a statewide burn ban is in effect until November 30 due to an increased fire risk as the state continues to experience drought conditions and a record number of outdoor fires. Also,...
#17 Second Teen Charged in New Jersey Forest Fire; New York Hopes Rain Douses Blaze
Nov 21 2024 // A second teenager was charged with intentionally setting a wildfire in a New Jersey suburb of Philadelphia as “significant” rainfall was expected to help douse a stubborn wildfire burning on the New Jersey-New...
#18 Man Is Charged With Truck Arson While Out on Bail on Other Arson Charge
Jan 7 2025 // A Maine man out on bail for an April 2024 arson charge has been charged with a new arson incident. According to officials, on the evening of January 5, the Maine State Fire Marshal (FMO) assisted with an investigation of...
#19 Las Vegas Telsa Arson Suspect to Remain Jailed Until Trial
Apr 2 2025 // A man accused of setting fire to Tesla vehicles in Las Vegas will remain jailed until his trial on federal charges of arson and possessing an explosive device, a judge ruled Monday. U.S. Magistrate Judge Elayna Youchah...
#20 Ex-Ohio Police Officer Sentenced for Starting Arson Fires
Mar 10 2025 // A former Ohio fire department administrator and police officer was sentenced in federal court here to 18 months in prison for starting dozens of arson fires in Wayne National Forest. James A. Bartels, 52, of Rio Grande,...
