Arson charges laid in $1M fire at Amherstburg home repeatedly targeted

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The Windsor Police Service has charged two people with deliberately setting fire to an Amherstburg residential property that officials say has been a repeated arson target.

Emergency officials responded to an active fire at the new-build house in the 200 block of Cowan Court at around 5 a.m. on Jan. 18. It was the third time in 16 months that the property had been the target of an arson attack.

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No physical injuries were reported during the incident. However, the fire caused an estimated $1-million in damages to the building and a neighbouring property.

According to fire officials, the tally from three fires at that same location since September 2023 totals $6.6 million.

The local department’s arson unit was able to obtain footage of three suspects running from the property carrying gasoline cans before fleeing the scene in a black luxury SUV.

Investigators identified the suspects and issued arrest warrants for two 19-year-old men, one from Brampton and the other from Mississauga, in connection with the fire.

Police said the two men turned themselves in at police headquarters in Windsor on Wednesday (March 19).

The suspects have each been charged with arson causing damage to property, possession of incendiary materials, and conspiracy to commit an indicatable offence of arson.

January’s incident follows two previous arsons involving the same house, according to authorities.

In September 2023, a deliberate fire caused nearly $4-million in damages to the home and a second property. An intentional blaze the following September also resulted in an estimated $1.6 million in damages.

Police are asking anyone with information to call the Windsor police arson unit at 519-255-6700, ext. 4330 or Crime Stoppers at 519-258-8477 (TIPS) or online at catchcrooks.com.

mholmeshill@postmedia.com

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