Sterling fire suspect filed insurance claim day after fatal blaze, court documents say
Sterling man allegedly set townhouse fire to collect insurance
The 78-year-old man charged with intentionally setting a townhouse fire in Sterling that left a woman dead was caught on camera behind the townhomes at the time the fire was set, according to court documents.
STERLING, Va. - The 78-year-old man charged with intentionally setting a townhouse fire in Sterling that left a woman dead was caught on camera behind the townhomes at the time the fire was set, according to court documents.
What we know:
A fire that tore through two townhomes in the 20000 block of Riptide Square on Friday, Oct. 24 left one dead – Madelaine Samantha Akers, 36.
78-year-old Jacob Bogatin was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and arson.
According to court documents, Bogatin's car contained ignitable liquid and a grill lighter in the central console. The day after the fire, an insurance claim was filed for more than double the amount that was owed on his unit which is in foreclosure.
Bogatin had the end unit, next door to Akers.
Court documents say the fire was set at the back of Akers' townhouse. It's unclear why.
The backstory:
The three-alarm fire, which broke out around 1 a.m., required a massive response as two homes were fully engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived and a third had been damaged.
The intensity of the fire prevented firefighters from entering the structure and forced them to extinguish the fire from the exterior.
Firefighters were able to bring the fire under control within an hour but as the flames were put out, Akers remained unaccounted for.
Neighbors told FOX 5 that they heard her screaming for help from a third-floor window as flames spread.
In total, eight people were displaced by the fire. Neighbors said they did not know much about Akers, only that she had moved in this past summer.