Burn Notice! Eviction Leads to Arson
A couple set fire to their mobile home after being evicted
This week marks the six year anniversary of The Cedar Fire. What started as a 20-acre fire in the East County ended up burning more than 280,000 acres and destroying 2800 buildings. Fifteen people died. One of the hardest hit communities was Scripps Ranch.
People handle rejection in different ways, so when a couple received a notice kicking them out of their mobile home, you could imagine their reaction. Or not.
Police claim Nicole Slone, 28, and her boyfriend, 18-year-old Timothy Rodriguez decided instead of getting out they would get even.
They torched their Davie trailer Monday in a blaze that took hours for firefighters to control.
When investigators sifted through the charred rubble and ash, they found traces of an accelerant throughout rooms in the mobile home. Slone and Rodriguez were arrested and charged with three counts of arson.
Rodriguez was overheard telling someone he would burn the place down, which is usually the response of someone who was just told they are getting the boot, but it apparently is also a common statement among pyromaniacs.
"The occupants in the home were told that they had to remove their trailer and [the fire] may have been started because of that," Davie Police Sgt. Greg Gasse told the Sun-Sentinel.
The couple had recently received an eviction notice to move their trailer out of the Western Hills Estate mobile home park. They had to be out by Saturday.
At least now they have a new place to live - the Broward County Jail.
Posted Wednesday, Nov 18, 2009 - 4:08 PM EST
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