SI Advance – April 01, 2015
by John M. Annese
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – A teenage arson suspect admitted he and a friend started a blaze in an under-construction Tottenville house, according to prosecutors.
Jahlil Valentine, 16, of the 300 block of Ilyssa Way in Arden Heights, made the statement to fire marshals, according to court papers.
Firefighters responded to a blaze at an unfinished home at 315 Ellis St. shortly before 8 p.m. on March 19, according to authorities.
They found two fires set, one in a front room, the other in a back room, then saw two more fires set in the brush near the water by the Tottenville Marina at 201 Ellis St., court papers allege.
Someone had spray-painted graffiti on two boats at the marina, and stolen the keys from a “cherry picker,” court papers allege.
The fires had been started with accelerant, and fire marshals searched the area, speaking to residents of the neighborhood, an FDNY spokesman said. That led the marshals to zero in on Valentine and a juvenile suspect, whose identity has not been released because of his age.
FDNY Fire Marshal Anthony Abbruzzese arrested Valentine on Monday.
According to the criminal complaint against him, Valentine gave a lengthy statement admitting to the crime:
“You know I was hanging out with this kid (the juvenile suspect.) He got this idea to go into this house. And he asked me to come in with him. Well I said, ‘What for?’ He said, ‘I just want you to come in with me.’ We found a can of liquid. I don’t know what it was. I poured some out on the attached garage floor to see what it was. When I realized it was gas I put it down.
“I didn’t know what (the juvenile suspect) was doing in there. I don’t know. I went outside. I don’t know what (the juvenile suspect) was doing. I just poured it, I didn’t light it. I poured it on the wood in the front room and (the juvenile suspect) lit it. I poured it in the back room, and (the juvenile suspect) lit that with a match.
“We climbed the fence. We left the bike and the scooter outside. We found another gas can. I poured it in a circle and (the juvenile suspect) lit it. I pooped outside the building and covered it up. I poured gas on it. I poured outside the building.
“Yes I poured it in the building and (the juvenile suspect) lit it. We left the bike and the scooter there. Yea, well you know I found the bike in the garbage, so I left it there. We went in some boats. We found a bunch of flares and box cutters and (the juvenile suspect) took them and put them in his bag.
“We found spray paint. I wanted to test it. I sprayed it on the boat. Yeah, I went in there. I took the key out. I gave it to (the juvenile suspect). I don’t know.”
Valentine faces two counts each of third- and fifth-degree arson, four counts of fourth-degree criminal mischief and a single count of petit larceny, according to information from District Attorney Daniel Donovan’s office.
He was slated to be arraigned in Stapleton Criminal Court on Tuesday.
An attempt to reach Valentine’s family by phone was unsuccessful Tuesday.
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