A 26-year-old American man from New York was arrested Wednesday for setting fire to the house of a police officer’s father over a traffic offense.
Tyler Williams acted out of revenge after collecting tickets when he was stopped last December by a police officer in Middletown, Orange County.
The day after his interception, the suspect went to set fire to the police officer’s paternal residence, according to what the “New York Post” reported, citing the ABC7 media.
The police officer’s father and two other people were in the residence at the time of the incident, but they were able to evacuate the scene in time without being injured.
After five months, investigators who conducted several searches determined the fire was criminal, according to Orange County Prosecutor David Hoovler.
The 26-year-old man had searched the internet for personal information about the police officer who had given him the tickets.
After finding the address of the officer’s father’s house, he decided to set it on fire, believing that the police officer lived there with his father.
“It is incomprehensible to think that a traffic ticket could put our families and our homes in this kind of danger,” lamented Warwick Police Chief John Rader.
Kept in custody without bail, the suspect who pleaded not guilty must return to court on Tuesday, according to American media.
