Suspected arsonist may be illegal immigrant

Posted at: 05/26/2010 12:24 PM
By: Austin Reed, Eyewitness News 4

Jorge VillavicencioValencia County deputies believe multiple fires that sparked in Valencia County Tuesday night were arson and had a suspect in custody Wednesday who could be an illegal immigrant.

The Valencia County Sheriff's Office says Immigration and Customs Enforcement, has put a hold on 48-year-old Jorge Villavicencio. No other information was being released at midday Wednesday.

Around 9 p.m. Tuesday, fire crews and the Valencia County Sheriff's Office responded to a house fire on Primero Road in Meadowlake.

When they arrived, three vehicles and a RV were on fire, as well as sections of two different homes. Fire crews extinguished the blazes quickly.

Investigators say the cause was a 48-year-old man who got into an argument with his wife. The man, believed to be Villavicencio, then picked up a five-gallon can of gas and then lit his RV on fire, which spread to a neighbor’s garage.

A Valencia Co. deputy says after torching his RV, the man ignited a vehicle in front of the home in an attempt to trap his wife, 8-year-old son, and 32-year-old stepson inside the house.

He then went to the back of house and lit two more vehicles on fire.

The man was arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated assault, and one count each of aggravated arson and child endangerment.

The family was treated for smoke inhalation and family members are OK while the houses and vehicles around the property suffered serious damage.

http://www.kob.com/article/stories/S157 ... ml?cat=500