| Foreclosure Related Arsons |
| Monday, 16 June 2008 | |
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With the surge of vacant and abandoned properties nationwide, many communities have seen an increase in arson related fires. As discussed in the below article from the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Cleveland is struggling to ensure the safety of its neighborhoods. Arsonists burn 98 vacant houses in Cleveland; 35 in foreclosureMore than a third of homes hit by arsonists were in foreclosure Investigators suspect fraud in a growing number of arsonsArsonists have torched nearly 100 vacant homes this year in Cleveland, and the blazes are stressing the Fire Department's budget. More than a third of the houses were in foreclosure, leading investigators to believe the blazes may involve some sort of mortgage fraud. Ninety-eight vacant homes were burned through June 10. Of these, at least 35 of the homes set on fire were in foreclosure, according to a Plain Dealer analysis of fire and court records. Fire Chief Paul Stubbs recently told a Tremont community group that the increase in vacant home fires is caused by the foreclosure crisis and has increased overtime for firefighters. "Vacant fires are impacting our budget because we are spending more time to catch the culprits," Stubbs said. "We will catch them. Eventually, they will slip up." Cleveland's fire investigative unit has teamed with federal investigators, the state fire marshal's office and a mortgage-fraud task force to solve the cases. So far, 37 people have been accused of torching homes this year. Last year, 231 vacant homes in Cleveland were intentionally set afire. The Fire Department changed the way it kept track of arsons - separating vacant houses from other fires - when fire officials realized so many of the fires they responded to involved vacant homes. Investigators do not believe the fires are the work of a serial arsonist, said Battalion Chief Michael Odum, head of the arson unit. They believe several people acting separately are responsible. But the investigations take time to complete. Detectives have to piece together information from lenders and insurance companies to determine if a homeowner is having financial problems, which could provide a motive for arson. "It's a tedious process," Odum said. "We have to look at everything." Nearly 25 percent of the torched homes have been in the North and South Broadway neighborhoods, which have one of the highest concentrations of foreclosed homes in the country. Councilman Anthony Brancatelli, who represents the area, said most of the 25 homes that were burned in those two neighborhoods had been boarded up before they were set on fire. No ownership patterns or locations have surfaced in the investigations, he said. The councilman said many of the homes didn't have others near them, and it makes him wonder if an arsonist is trying to be a vigilante. "They don't seem to be putting people at risk," Brancatelli said. "That's the strange part. It's pretty scary." Odum calls the idea "urban renewal by fire." He said people may just get tired of seeing an abandoned property dragging down their neighborhood. Investigators have blanketed neighborhoods with arson signs, urging people to provide information anonymously. Reward money is available. Odum warned that arsonists are becoming more daring, lighting fires in the middle of the afternoon. In one such case last month, a home on Union Avenue went up in flames around 2:45 p.m., and the fire spread to a house next door. An hour later and three blocks away, a home on Anderson Avenue was torched. Odum believes there are other reasons for the spike in arsons. Among them: children playing inside the houses, homeless people living in them and people falling behind on their mortgage payments. Cleveland, like other big cities, has long battled safety hazards posed by abandoned houses. The homes lower property values and prompt residents to flee the neighborhood. Abandoned homes also attract crime. Thieves strip copper wire and pipes from the interior and aluminum siding from the exterior, selling it for scrap. The houses also become havens for drug dealers, prostitutes and the homeless. Fires at vacant homes are a threat not only to neighboring structures but also to firefighters who enter the homes searching for people. Firefighters rarely go back inside once they determine a house is vacant. They work from the outside to keep flames from spreading to nearby homes. The traditional solution to abandoned properties was to raze the empty houses, a practice that left neighborhoods with empty lots strewn with trash and overgrown with weeds. The city has budgeted $6 million this year to demolish abandoned homes, up from $1.7 million a few years ago. The torched structures are moved to the top of the list of homes to be demolished, said Safety Director Martin Flask. Mary Bonelli, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Insurance Institute, said the dismal economy has created the perfect storm for insurance fraud and arson. Many Ohio insurers are seeing questionable claims. One company has seen arsons increase on homes on which foreclosure has started, but the investigations are incomplete, she said. The arson problem is not restricted to Cleveland. "It's an issue that we are seeing statewide," said Shane Cartmill, a spokesman for the state fire marshal. "We're watching it closely." To view the online article, please click here.
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