A Bradford woman is facing felony charges relating to an alleged arson fire in November 2019 at a vacant rental property she owned.
Tina Stack, 53, will be charged with arson — danger of death or serious injury, a first-degree felony; arson — intent to collect insurance, a second-degree felony; false insurance claim, a third-degree felony; and disorderly conduct, a third-degree misdemeanor. She has yet to be arraigned on the charges.
According to the criminal complaint, on Nov. 14, 2019, Cpl. Greg Agosti, state police fire marshal, was called by Derrick City Fire Department for assistance in determining the cause of a fire in a vacant residential rental property.
The structure was a wood frame home with a basement and attached garage, and a portion of the garage had once been used as a business shop. The shop area contained rubbish, secondhand goods and materials scattered on the floor. A pile of rubbish on the floor showed significant fire damage, the complaint stated. Fire patterns showed the blaze had spread from the rubbish pile toward an entrance to the main residence, where a sofa was positioned in the doorway. There were fresh drag marks visible on the wooden floor in the living room of the residence, leading to the opening where the couch was positioned. The end of the sofa toward the shop had minimal fire damage, as it was extinguished by firefighters, the complaint alleged.
Agosti determined the fire was consistent with the use of an ignitable liquid. Fire marshal Tyler Thompson recovered a melted fuel container on the floor of the shop area. It had contained gasoline, the complaint stated.
Agosti interviewed Stack at the scene. She said she was the owner, the home was insured and it was currently vacant. She told him she had been at the property earlier in the day, but didn’t see any sign of fire at that time.
Foster Township Police spoke to a witness who saw Stack park her truck and enter the property before the fire. She was in the garage about 10 minutes, then closed the garage and drove away. About 10 to 15 minutes later, the witness saw smoke and called 9-1-1, the complaint alleged.
Stack filed an insurance claim, but upon investigation, it was denied, according to the complaint.
The charges were filed on Tuesday in the office of District Judge Rich Luther in Foster Township.
