By Robin Acton
The Pittsburgh Tribune Review
NEW CASTLE, Pa. — New Castle police anticipate more arrests in connection with a suspected arson ring that terrorized residents of the city’s Lower East Side for the past two years.
Police on Tuesday charged eight young people, all from New Castle, with torching 11 structures and one vehicle between November 2007 and July of this year. Authorities said they expect more arrests in connection with as many as 50 suspicious fires that occurred between June 2007 and last month.
“I think they are responsible for more than 12,” said police Chief Thomas Sansone, who pegged the city’s total number of arsons at 34. “They were all friends. ... They caused a lot of the problems on the East Side.”
Fire Chief Thomas Maciarello, who disagreed with the police chief’s numbers, said his department battled at least 50 suspicious fires since he became chief in January 2008. He said he is relieved by the arrests because he feared for the safety of firefighters and the public.
“We fight fires every day, but with someone setting fires with wanton destruction in mind, we’re pretty happy that we got them,” Maciarello said.
Police said the suspects worked together, but not everyone was involved in all of the fires. In some cases, arsonists removed copper fittings and pipes from homes before setting fires.
Investigators got a break about six weeks ago when a woman heard glass breaking in a vacant house next to her Oak Street home, and officers who responded found three of the suspects inside. Police said they obtained three confessions and were able to bring charges after interviewing those suspects.
Sansone said the tipster might receive some money from a $13,000 fund set up to reward anyone who supplied information leading to the arrest and conviction of the arsonists.
Arrested were Ruben Suarez, 23; Steven Sheridan, 21; Mark Quear, 20; Stephen Threats, 20; Darrell Rice Jr., 20; Rachelle Lombardo, 24; a 16-year-old male; and a 19-year-old male. Police said the 19-year-old was charged as a juvenile because he was 17 at the time of the fire for which he was arrested.
Suarez, Sheridan, Quear, Threats, and Rice are charged with multiple counts of arson, burglary, theft, conspiracy and criminal trespass, police said. Lombardo and the 16-year-old are charged with several counts of conspiracy. The 19-year-old is charged with criminal trespass and conspiracy, according to police.
The adults were arraigned before District Judge Melissa A. Amodie, who scheduled preliminary hearings for 10:30 a.m. Nov. 4. Authorities filed juvenile petitions against the teenagers.
Amodie set bond for Suarez at $50,000 per fire in connection with nine fires; for Sheridan, $75,000 each for seven fires; Quear, $75,000 each for five fires; Threats, $75,000 each for four fires; Rice, $100,000 each for two fires; and Lombardo, $75,000 each for four fires. They were jailed in the Lawrence County Prison.
“Hopefully, we can rest a little easier,” Sansone said. He said the fires frightened neighbors and the extensive investigation taxed the manpower of city firefighters, police and outside agencies.
Last month, the city set up an arson task force that included New Castle police, state police and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. In the past six weeks, task force investigators interviewed about 50 people and identified the eight suspects.
All of the suspects are friends, and at least two are related, according to police, who said all lived on the Lower East Side. Although the suspects removed, or tried to remove, copper plumbing fixtures before setting the fires, authorities could not point to burglary as the sole motive.
“There’s no real motive to speak of,” Sansone said. “Arson cases are the hardest to solve and prove, because they occur in the middle of the night when no one is around.”
James Tanda, supervisory special agent with the ATF in Pittsburgh, said the investigation is continuing.
“Today is an important step, but there is still a lot of work to be done,” Tanda said. “There are fires that have not been solved.”
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