A 30-year-old homeless man is facing charges in connection with setting fire to one Springfield home and trying to set fire to another, police announced Wednesday.
Nicholas Denson has been charged with arson of a dwelling, breaking and entering into a building during the daytime to commit a felony, attempted arson of a dwelling, defacing property and assault and battery on a police officer, Springfield police said in a press release.
On April 24 around 4:35 a.m., Springfield police and firefighters responded to the 200 block of Belmont Avenue for a report that a home was on fire, police said. The home’s rear porch was ablaze, but firefighters managed to extinguish the flames.
Springfield police’s arson and bomb squad began investigating and soon located a gasoline can near the porch, police said. An arson K9 dog also detected accelerants or flammable liquids on the porch.
Around 3:30 p.m. that day, the arson and bomb squad investigated an attempted arson at an apartment on Buckingham Street, police said. When they entered the home, they immediately smelled gasoline.
Officers soon spotted Denson fleeing out the back door of the apartment and pursued him, police said. They found Denson on State Street and arrested him around 4:05 p.m., but he shoved an officer before being taken into custody.
No further information has been released.
