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Christopher G. Gillie, 61, of Dunmore, was charged with murder, attempted murder, aggravated arson, recklessly endangering another person, persons not to possess firearms, and related offenses for the events that led up to the death of 81-year-old Julius Drelick, Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub said Monday.
Investigators believe Gillie intentionally set fire to 5777 Private Drive in Buckingham Township shortly after 3 a.m. Sunday, while Drelick and his wife were sleeping inside.
Neighbors called 911 after being woken up by screams coming from the burning house, authorities said.
The house was fully engulfed in flames when crews arrived around 3:15 a.m., Buckingham Township police said.
Outside, they met Drelick's wife, who said her husband was still inside. The house was completely engulfed in flames and smoke, preventing units from entering, police said.
Firefighters were able to finally reach Drelick on the second floor of the home, but he was unresponsive, authorities said.
Drelick was pronounced dead at the scene.
The woman was able to escape without injuries, by using a chair lift to get down the stairs, the DA's office said. Her husband, on the other hand, was not so fortunate; because the fire knocked out the electricity in the house, the chair lift was no longer functional, preventing the man from escaping, authorities noted.
“I can’t stop thinking about that chairlift frozen in place by the fire in the middle of the stairs," District Attorney Matt Weintraub said.
“The defendant’s intentional fire caused the electrical short to the chairlift just after Mrs. Drelick used it to escape the fire and prevented Mr. Drelick from doing the same thing.”
“I cannot imagine the terror that they both must have felt as they were separated by the fire. Now, forever," he added.
Investigators quickly identified the fire as arson, after a police K9 detected an accelerant in three areas of the family room, the DA's office said.
Gillie took off with his roommate's car from Dunmore and drove to her parents' home in Buckingham Township, authorities said. The car was later reported missing by the roommate.
Surveillance footage shows the vehicle traveling up the driveway toward 5777 Private Drive at approximately 2:04 a.m., and driving away from the home at 2:53 a.m., according to a criminal complaint.
Hours after the fire, Gillie was stopped in Lackawanna County by Dunmore police while driving a Buick Encore that belonged to Drelick's daughter, authorities said.
Gillie smelled of gasoline and a lighter was visible on the passenger seat, police said.
He was also discovered with the house keys to 5777 Private Drive in his pocket, as well as an older-style rifle visible on the back seat of the vehicle, according to police.
The rifle was positively identified as the Drelicks' and had been hanging above their fireplace mantle in the same room where the K9 detected accelerants, investigators said.
Gillie previously faced prison time after pleading guilty to arson in Scranton in 2013, public court records show.
Authorities have not released a motive for the Bucks County crime.
Gillie was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Joseph P. Falcone and was sent to Bucks County Correctional Facility without bail.
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