Amber SouthChambersburg Public Opinion
A Franklin County man is charged with attempted homicide after he allegedly set fire to a Chambersburg home following a dispute with one of the residents in December.
Nelson Rodriguez, 39, was arrested Jan. 31 and taken to Franklin County Jail, according to court records.
Magisterial District Judge Glenn Manns denied bail, saying there are "no conditions available to ensure the safety of the victims and the community," court records show.
Rodriguez is charged with two counts each of attempted homicide, aggravated arson, arson, which are all felonies, and reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor, according to court records. He also faces a felony count each of causing catastrophe and criminal mischief.
Lawn mower next to house set on fire
The fire happened on Dec. 27 in the 100 block of South Third Street. Chambersburg Fire Department responded shortly before 10:30 a.m. and "quickly extinguished" the fire, which the fire chief confirmed started at a lawn mower beside the house and extended to the structure, according to court documents.
One of the two residents in the house told police they heard banging on the front door and saw a person run to the back of the house before the fire, according to court documents.
Police said they observed footage from the borough's surveillance cameras, which showed the fire starting followed by three people running into the home's backyard and going through a hole in the fence.
Surveillance footage also showed the three people at the home where the fire was for "multiple hours prior to the fire," then walking from the front of the home to the back "right before the fire," court documents state.
A resident of the home identified the three individuals, one of whom was Rodriguez, police said.
A resident of the home later told police the names of the three people at the home the day of the fire, and then confirmed they were the people seen on the video footage. One of them was Rodriguez, police said.
In addition, the resident said the lawn mower had been behind the house before the fire, not beside the house where it was found on fire, according to court documents.
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Accomplice says Rodriguez, resident had 'beef'
Days later, police got in contact with one of the three people seen in the video footage. They said Rodriguez was responsible for starting the fire.
"She stated Rodriguez had been arguing with the male victim of the house over money just prior to starting the fire and stated Rodriguez had 'beef' with the victim," police wrote in court documents.
This person, whose name was redacted from court documents, went on to tell police Rodiguez moved the lawn mower to the side of the house, removed a cap and "dropped something in it," according to court documents. They ran off through the backyard once the fire started.
Court documents did not identify the two people seen with Rodriguez or state whether either is charged in connection with the incident.
Damage from the fire was estimated at $5,000, police said.
Rodriguez also charged in hit-and-run
Rodriguez is also charged with accidents involving damage to an attended vehicle following an incident that happened Jan. 9. That is one day after police talked to the person who identified him as being responsible for the fire, but court documents do not say if the two crimes are connected.
A hit-and-run was reported just before 3 p.m. A motorist said he was driving east on Lincoln Way East toward I-81 when his vehicle was rear-ended by a black vehicle. The striking vehicle continued driving east and got on I-81 southbound.
Using surveillance cameras and license plate readers, police identified the vehicle as a Subaru Impreza.
Someone, whose name is redacted, told police on Jan. 10 she lent her Subaru Impreza to Rodriguez and he returned it with front-end damage.
Manns set bail at $100 for this case, according to court records, but Rodriguez will remain in jail for the attempted homicide case unless the bail conditions are changed.
Preliminary hearings for both cases are set for 1:30 p.m. Feb. 13 in Franklin County Central Court.
Amber South can be reached at asouth@publicopinionnews.com.
