$300,000 Bail Set For Elmont Car Fire Suspect
ELMONT, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A suspect accused of setting at least six cars on fire in Elmont was arraigned in court on Friday.
Bail was set at $300,000 for suspect Juan Perez, 36, of Hempstead, who was charged with three counts of arson and criminal mischief in connection to the incident, CBS2's Andrea Grymes reported.
When asking for lower bail, Perez' attorney mentioned the suspects 2 1/2-year old daughter and his work in construction. The motion was denied.
Perez was silent as he made his way to court. His loved ones also declined to answer questions after his arraignment.
The torched vehicles were all parked within a radius of several blocks. They were seemingly targeted at random -- leaving charred debris and horrified residents to pick up the pieces.
Police said the suspect first damaged a 2009 Chevrolet parked on Hillsborough Avenue by slashing the front seat and the dashboard. Then the fires began – beginning with a 2012 Nissan parked on Terrace Avenue, followed by a 2001 Mercedes Benz, a 2008 Infiniti and a 2009 Toyota all on Stone Street, and a 2014 Infiniti parked on Steele Street.
The suspect was also blamed for back window damage to a 2003 Honda parked on Stone Street.
Joe Morris came outside to see his neighbor's car in flames.
"When I came out of the house, I saw the car trunk on fire," Morris said. "I grabbed the fire extinguisher. The fire department was just coming up Stewart Street."
Morris said he is glad the suspect is off the streets.
"See, it's one thing stealing something and everything else, but he was destroying people's property. You had the one guy who bought the car for his wife," Morris said. "To burn the cars and stuff like that, whatever he gets, he deserves."
Morris's neighbor is the Good Samaritan investigators said confronted Perez Thursday morning, got into a physical fight with him, and subdued him at Ludlam Place and Lincoln Street until police arrived.
According to Detective Lt. Richard LeBrun, of the Nassau County Police, it is unclear why Perez sought to set fire to the vehicles.
"We know that he was looking for money -- but as far as exactly why he set fire to the vehicles and why he slashed the seats -- we may not know that," LeBrun said.
Many in the neighborhood carry only liability insurance, so the car fires meant a total loss.
