By Dale Vincent
The New Hampshire Union Leader
MANCHESTER, N.H. — A Lawrence, Mass., man is accused of assaulting his girlfriend and then setting fires in the basement of her apartment building at 322 Rimmon St. early Tuesday, forcing 18 people to flee.
Police said quick work by the Manchester Fire Department prevented an explosion. Victor Chamorro, 22, had opened the valve of a propane tank and directed the gas at a fire he set in property belonging to his girlfriend’s family, according to police. The Manchester Fire Department was able to get the tank out of the basement before it exploded.
Police prosecutor Lt. Robert Cunha sought $250,000, cash-only bail for Chamorro in Manchester District Court on Tuesday.
Cunha said Chamorro first set fire to a fast-food bag, to set off the smoke alarms and annoy people. But when Chamorro allegedly set the fire in a pile of the family’s property and opened the propane tank valve, directing gas toward the fire, it appears his intent was “very much to cause harm to people.”
Cunha said no criminal record was found for Chamorro, but the arson charge was sufficiently serious to warrant a high bail.
Cunha said Chamorro had assaulted his girlfriend and was told to leave the Rimmon Street triple-decker where the woman was staying with her sister. When Chamorro returned a few minutes later and was again told to leave, the sister told police Chamorro said: “Fine, I’m going to take care of it all.”
A few minutes later, the sister told police, the smoke alarms began sounding. She saw smoke in the rear hallway and grabbed a fire extinguisher and opened the cellar door. She said she was met with heavy smoke and retreated and called 911.
The sister told police Chamorro knew who the property belonged to because he had assisted in rearranging the family’s items in the basement.
Chamorro is accused of resisting arrest, by running from police when they located him in the area of Domino’s pizza on Amory Street.
According to court documents, Chamorro had two lighters in his possession when arrested.
Detective Timothy Patterson said Chamorro admitted pushing his girlfriend in the face during an argument. He said he later set fire to a fast-food bag to set off the alarms to annoy his girlfriend and her sister, and make them go outside for a while.
He denied setting a second fire or setting the propane tank on its side and opening the nozzle.
District Court Judge William Lyons set Chamorro’s bail at $250,000 cash or surety. A probable cause hearing was set for Dec. 8. Trial on the assault and resisting arrest charges was set for Feb. 28.
Deputy Fire Chief Dan Goonan said the building sustained smoke damage, but ServePro was cleaning it and the residents should be able to return to their units later Tuesday.
There have been at least 50 arson fires in the city this year and although several people have been charged in connection with some of them, others remain under investigation. One teen was charged with setting four small fires on the West Side in a 2 1/2-hour period Oct. 10.
According to Manchester Police Department statistics, the city has already had more arsons so far this year than during all of last year. In 2009, there were 43 arsons; in 2008, there were 55.
These arsons include three apartment buildings set ablaze in a two-block area of Myrtle Street in May, and a cluster of fire-damaged buildings along Mammoth Road in March. Both are considered open investigations.
New Hampshire Union Leader reporter Beth Lamontagne Hall contributed to this story.
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