A teen suspect has been arrested on arson charges in a series of fires in North Bay Village last month that caused tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage, officials said.
A teen suspect has been arrested on arson charges in a series of fires in North Bay Village last month that caused tens of thousands of dollars worth of damage, officials said.
The 17-year-old suspect is accused of setting three vehicles and a home on fire in the 7500 block of Mutiny Avenue the afternoon of Feb. 28, North Bay Village officials said Thursday.
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WATCH HEREThe cars were in a parking lot outside the Treasure Isle Care Centre, a nursing home, and belonged to nurses. The house that was set on fire was under construction and was empty.
“It’s unusual for an incident like this to happen in North Bay Village, we are a very small community,” said Julie Leonardi, a spokesperson for North Bay Village.
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North Bay Village Police and the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Arson Unit began investigating and used neighborhood canvassing and surveillance footage to track the suspect to a high-rise apartment building on South Treasure Drive, less than a mile from the scene.
“Our detectives went door to door canvassing,” Leonardi said. “They used Ring cameras to identify what the suspect looked like.”
The juvenile was taken into custody and confessed to starting all four fires due to frustration over a school sports matter, officials said.
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According to an arrest report, the teen said he'd been suspended from his high school baseball team after he was caught with a vaping device in his glove the day before the fires were set.
Rather than accept the suspension, he quit the team out of anger, the report said.
On Feb. 28, he checked into his homeroom class but left the school and started walking around North Bay Village to "clear his head."
He ended up outside the nursing home and got into a car to smoke his vape device then started lighting papers on fire. He did the same thing in a second car and was confronted by staff, but ran and hid in a third car and started another fire, the report said.
He left and ended up at the home where he started lighting several beds on fire. Aerial footage provided by a neighbor showed extensive damage inside the home, with multiple beds and walls burned up.
“The fire was mostly contained to the inside of the home and was set in five different places,” said Leonardi, but authorities did not disclose how the teen gained access to the residence.
The suspect is facing multiple counts of arson and burglary and was booked into the Dade County Juvenile Assessment Center.
