Thursday, February 04, 1999
Rescuer charged with arson
Officials suspect fire retaliation for eviction
BY DAN HORN
The Cincinnati Enquirer
A man who claimed to have rescued his family from a burning home was indicted Wednesday on charges of setting the fire.
Brian Howard, 28, faces six counts of aggravated arson and could be sentenced to up to 60 years in prison if he is convicted of all charges.
Although Mr. Howard told firefighters he saved his wife and four children from the Jan. 25 blaze, investigators became suspicious of him after they determined that someone may have set the fire.
Prosecutors said fire officials eventually concluded that Mr. Howard set the blaze in retaliation for an eviction notice.
“It's hard to believe that a husband and father could jeopardize the well-being of something he has an absolute moral and legal duty to pro tect and cherish — his family,” said Hamilton County Prosecutor Mike Allen.
The fire started at 1:25 a.m. in the basement of the two-story frame home on Bank Street.
The home was gutted and damage was estimated at $90,000. Mr. Howard and his family escaped unharmed.
Hours after the fire, prosecutors say, Mr. Howard admitted to police that he set the blaze in the basement while his wife and children slept upstairs.
His wife told investigators the sec ond floor was filled with smoke when her husband woke her and told her of the fire, causing police to suspect the fire had been burning for some time.
When firefighters arrived at the scene, Mr. Howard told them he had noticed smoke in the register vents, woke his family and got them outside.
Investigators found several points of origin of the fire in the basement.
Mr. Howard, who was renting the house, recently was evicted in court for not paying rent, police said.
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TRISTATE DIGEST
Two cameras let firefighters see in smoke
