An Aurora man has been charged with burning down a house just hours after a dispute at the home with his girlfriend, police said.
The Cayuga County Sheriff's Office said Chad E. Towsley, 31, of 923 Poplar Ridge Road, started a fire at 6 p.m. Friday just hours after a domestic incident with his girlfriend in which he is accused of damaging property belonging to the landlord he was renting the house from.
The fire gutted the interior of the home and burned through half of the roof before firefighters were able to bring it under control.
Police said that investigators from the sheriff's office and the Cayuga County Fire Investigation Team determined Friday night that the fire was suspicious and that physical evidence later found at the scene indicated that the fire had been intentionally set.
Two investigators and a trained dog from the state Office of Fire Prevention scoured the building on Saturday and all potential accidental causes for the fire were later ruled out, police said.
Towsley was arrested Monday at the Cayuga County Jail and charged with the felony crimes of third-degree arson, first-degree reckless endangerment and second-degree criminal mischief.
Towsley had been locked up Saturday on a charge of fourth-degree criminal mischief stemming from his alleged actions during the domestic disturbance, police said.
Towsley was arraigned Monday on the arson related charges in Ledyard Town Court and was returned to the county jail with bail set at $25,000 or $50,000 bond.
The county sheriff's office is still investigating the case and requests that anyone with information, call detectives at 253-1610.
The fire gutted the interior of the home and burned through half of the roof before firefighters were able to bring it under control.
Police said that investigators from the sheriff's office and the Cayuga County Fire Investigation Team determined Friday night that the fire was suspicious and that physical evidence later found at the scene indicated that the fire had been intentionally set.
Two investigators and a trained dog from the state Office of Fire Prevention scoured the building on Saturday and all potential accidental causes for the fire were later ruled out, police said.
Towsley was arrested Monday at the Cayuga County Jail and charged with the felony crimes of third-degree arson, first-degree reckless endangerment and second-degree criminal mischief.
Towsley had been locked up Saturday on a charge of fourth-degree criminal mischief stemming from his alleged actions during the domestic disturbance, police said.
Towsley was arraigned Monday on the arson related charges in Ledyard Town Court and was returned to the county jail with bail set at $25,000 or $50,000 bond.
The county sheriff's office is still investigating the case and requests that anyone with information, call detectives at 253-1610.
