Even in Henderson, arson often goes unreported...... By Beth Smith bsmith@thegleaner 270-831-8334 In 2012, nearly five years after participating in a scheme to burn down her home on Rucker Road and collect insurance money, former Henderson County resident Lori Hargis was sent to federal prison. She was sentenced to five years. Hargis and one other person are accused of trying to defraud the State Auto Insurance company to whom a judge ordered she pay restitution of more than $672,000, according to news reports following her sentencing. Leslie Vashaun White was sentenced to three years for his role in helping Hargis burn down her house. As local fire investigators said, this wasn’t the first case of arson in Henderson County, nor will it be the last. “Henderson County isn’t the arson capital of the world ... But (arson) probably is underreported,” said County Fire Investigator Ron Iler. “It’s really hard to catch an arsonist. There’s a way to set fires that even the best investigator can’t catch,” he said. “As far as frequency of arson in (Henderson County), it varies from year to year,” said County Fire Investigator Nick Risley. “A rough estimate would be an average of 10 possible arson calls per year. Sometimes it’s more, and sometimes it’s less.” In the city, Henderson Fire Capt. Shane Onstott said to his knowledge, there have been fewer arsons. “There have been four or five suspected arsons since I’ve been here, which is five years,” he said. “Three have been proven as arsons, and there has been one conviction.” In the county, “There’s been several cases of arson that we knew were arson, but we couldn’t prove it,” Iler said. “At that point (the cause) becomes suspicious/undetermined or just undetermined,” Risley said. People choosing to commit arson are predominantly after money, investigators said. “They’ll burn whatever they can get insurance money for,” Iler said. The list could include a home, vehicle, boat or whatever item for which “they can no longer afford the payment,” Risley said. “Structure fires are more likely than car fires in an arson,” Iler said, adding there’s more insurance money involved when it’s a building or a home. “A variety of motives may prompt someone to commit arson, but trying to get money by making false insurance claims is certainly high on the list,” Risley said. Another motive, Onstott said is “revenge. A relationship gone bad.” “If (someone) catches their spouse running around, people may burn their stuff,” Iler said. When getting to a scene of a fire, investigators have a goal: to determine the cause. “The first thing fire investigators pinpoint is where the fire originated, because this is often a vital clue,” Risley said. “A whole lot of arson (investigations) is based on fire behavior,” Iler said. “Fire investigators will conduct investigations that may involve examining burn patterns, looking for gasoline or other accelerants and interviewing individuals,” Risley said. Sometimes, he said, there isn’t any obvious evidence to indicate arson. “You may have to dig around sometimes,” Iler said. “There may not be anything at the scene ... If we think it’s an arson, we can follow a financial trail.” The lack of televisions and other such items in the home are also clues an arson might have been committed. “If they’re going to burn a home, they’ll take valuables out before setting it on fire,” Iler said. “(Things) will be missing.” Fire investigators may follow the clues, Iler said, but “we aren’t law enforcement. If we suspect arson, we contact the State Fire Marshal’s Office for an investigator” or the Kentucky State Police. “Assisting other fire chiefs, other investigators and law enforcement in the collection of evidence that could possibly bring an arsonist to justice,” Risley said, “makes me enjoy being a fire investigator that much more.”
Posted on: Mon, 02 Dec 2013 17:23:02 +0000
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