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Jacob Kyle Hickman, 25, was arrested on a warrant following the investigation into a mid-October incendiary fire that destroyed an 80-year-old woman's garage and all its contents in Aberdeen, the Maryland State Fire Marshal announced on Wednesday, Dec. 21.
Shortly before 4 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 19, first responders were called to a home on Carter Street in Aberdeen, when a neighbor reported that a massive fire had broken out inside a one-car garage with an attached shed.
Firefighters arrived within minutes, where they found a one-car, detached garage that was fully engulfed.
Officials said that it took a team of more than two dozen firefighters just minutes to get the flames under control, but not before the blaze tore through the structure, destroying everything, including a 2004 Volvo that was parked inside.
Deputy State Fire Marshals, along with state police K9 units and collected surveillance video determined that the fire was an act of arson, and ultimately they were led to identify Hickman as a suspect.
"Arson is a heinous crime that is aggressively and thoroughly investigated,” Chief Deputy State Fire Marshal Jason M. Mowbray said. “Our agency is dedicated to protecting the citizens and visitors of Maryland. Such a violent act against one of our older adults is especially appalling. I hope this arrest comforts her and the community just before the holidays.”
The fire caused an estimated $100,000 in damage, the garage and its contents were considered a total loss, and the neighbor who reported the fire suffered damage to their garage and vehicle as well.
It remains unclear what the movie behind the intentional fire was or what the connection is between Hickman and his 80-year-old neighbor.
Hickman was charged with:
- Two counts of second-degree arson;
- Two counts of first-degree malicious burning;
- Two counts of malicious destruction of property over $1,000;
- Second-degree burglary;
- Fourth-degree burglary;
- Trespassing on private property.
He is being held at the Harford County Detention Center on a $7,500 bond.
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