FITCHBURG — A local court has issued a warrant for the arrest of a Fitchburg man in connection with a fire earlier this year at 164 Myrtle Ave., Fitchburg.
On June 18, Mark Alicea, 39, was indicted in absentia by Worcester Superior Court on charges of arson of a dwelling house, larceny of a motor vehicle and larceny over $1,200 (worth of electronics) and a warrant was issued for his arrest. All three charges were from incidents on Feb. 18.
The fire was one of a series of fires in Fitchburg this spring that were suspected of being set on purpose.
For the fire on Myrtle Avenue on Feb. 18, Fitchburg fire personnel responded at 8:38 a.m. According to then-Fitchburg Fire Chief Dante Suarez, they discovered heavy fire upon arrival.
“Primary search of building found a victim on the second floor. Victim was extricated and transported to local hospital for further treatment,” Suarez said. Seven people were displaced as a result of the Myrtle Avenue fire and there were no other injuries reported. He estimated that the fire caused $200,000 in property damage and $50,000 in personal property damage.
The fire is under investigation by the Fitchburg Fire Department and the Fitchburg Police Department, in addition to the Office of the State Fire Marshal.
Fitchburg Police Chief Stephen Giannini said, “The Fitchburg Police Department continues to work closely with our federal and state law enforcement partners in our efforts to locate Mr. Alicea. These efforts remain ongoing. At this time I do not have a definitive timeline. We have not received any recent tips. Additionally, none of the tips received to date have assisted us in identifying any suspects in the other fire investigations. At this time, we have no reason to believe the Myrtle Avenue fire is connected to the other fires.”
String of fires
City and state officials have been investigating a trio of suspicious fires that took place in February, on Blossom and Day streets as well as the Myrtle Avenue fire, as arson. A press release urged anyone with information or tips to share it with the Arson Watch Rewards Program at 800-682-9229, with calls confidential and remaining anonymous an option.
Chief Giannini stated in a release at the time, “I’m asking everyone in our community to stay alert and pay attention to anything unusual in your surroundings. If you see something that doesn’t seem right, trust your instincts and report it. If you have any information about these incidents, no matter how minor it may seem, please come forward. Even the smallest detail could make a difference.”
Two of the fires took place on Feb. 14 and 15 in a large apartment building with entrances at 43 Blossom St. and 40 Day St. Fitchburg firefighters successfully extinguished both fires before they could spread substantially. The third took place on Feb. 18 about half a mile away at a multi-family home at 164 Myrtle Ave.
“The Fitchburg Fire Department, Fitchburg Police, and State Police assigned to the State Fire Marshal’s Office are jointly investigating all three of these incidents,” State Fire Marshal Jon Davine said in a release earlier this year. “We’ve reached the point where we can confidently say that they were intentionally set. We have not reached a determination as to whether the fires on Blossom and Day streets are related, but we always consider a link when suspicious fires are reported in close proximity.”
“Yes, we’ve had a string of fires over the last few days. They are all under investigation by the Fitchburg Fire Department arson squad,” said Suarez, earlier this year.
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