Updated

Updated · Fox News · Jul 9

Florida Man, 53, Arrested After Setting Tampa Restaurant Ablaze With Flaming Propane Tank

Updated

Updated · Fox News · Jul 9

Florida Man, 53, Arrested After Setting Tampa Restaurant Ablaze With Flaming Propane Tank

Q: As police bodycam footage becomes public, what will it show about the moments before the restaurant erupted in chaos?

The bodycam footage is expected to show deputies arriving after the chaos had already begun: the restaurant filled with smoke and flames, a propane tank burning outside, and Rubiel Maceo Castillo inside holding two knives as deputies repeatedly order him to drop them. It likely will not show the key moments that triggered the fire. According to court records and sheriff’s office surveillance video, those earlier actions were captured by the restaurant’s cameras, not by deputies’ body-worn cameras. Investigators say Castillo charged at people inside, cut a woman on the wrist when she intervened, then cut a gas line connected to a grill, ignited a propane tank, and carried the flaming tank through the business. So the public bodycam video should document law enforcement’s response to an already dangerous scene rather than the full lead-up to it. The clearest evidence of what happened immediately before the restaurant erupted appears to come from surveillance footage and witness accounts, which authorities say corroborate the arson and assault allegations. Castillo, 53, was arrested July 7 and is being held without bond. He faces charges including first-degree arson of an occupied structure, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated battery with a weapon causing great bodily harm, and felony criminal mischief. Investigators have said the incident may have stemmed from a domestic dispute involving Castillo and his wife.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 9

Hillsborough County deputies arrested Rubiel Maceo Castillo, 53, after finding a Tampa restaurant filled with smoke and flames during an 8:45 a.m. response to an assault call.
Investigators say Castillo charged at people with two knives, cut a woman on the wrist, then cut a grill gas line, grabbed a propane tank and ignited the fire.
Bodycam and surveillance video show deputies ordering him to drop the knives as he remained inside the burning restaurant, while fire rescue crews helped extinguish the blaze.
Castillo was jailed without bond on charges including first-degree arson of an occupied structure, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and criminal mischief causing more than $1,000 in damage.
Authorities have not publicly identified a motive, though local media reported investigators believe the attack stemmed from a domestic dispute involving Castillo and his wife.