Updated
Updated · The Philadelphia Inquirer · Jun 3
Volunteer Firefighter Justin Sholly, 19, Admits Setting 3 Fires for Revenge
Updated
Updated · The Philadelphia Inquirer · Jun 3

Volunteer Firefighter Justin Sholly, 19, Admits Setting 3 Fires for Revenge

3 articles · Updated · The Philadelphia Inquirer · Jun 3

Summary

  • $500,000 bail kept Justin Sholly in custody after police said the 19-year-old admitted setting three Franconia Township fires over Memorial Day weekend, then responding to two of them with his volunteer company.
  • Police said one fire was set near the home of a former boss who had fired him, and two blazes were close to occupied homes; a barn on Schoolhouse Road was destroyed.
  • Fire-starter logs and a lighter were recovered from Sholly's car, and automatic license plate readers placed his Ford Edge near two fire scenes shortly before they were ignited.
  • June 10 is the date for Sholly's preliminary hearing, while Franconia's police chief said the arrest should let residents in the tight-knit community 'take a collective sigh of relief.'

Insights

What makes a volunteer firefighter, a trusted community hero, allegedly turn into a serial arsonist?
How will this arson case, solved by tracking a car, shape the future rules of digital surveillance?