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Firefighter arrested for arson
Published 12:05am Wednesday, August 1, 2012
A two-year Opp firefighter is facing arson charges after he allegedly set fire to a vacant mobile home Sunday evening.
According to the state fire marshal’s office, William “Brad” Burleson, 22, was arrested Monday and charged with arson II, after he allegedly set fire to an uninhabited mobile home on Covala Road, off of U.S. 331 in Opp on Sunday.
Opp Fire Department members were called to Covala Road around 8:48 p.m. to a structure fire, 911 reports show.
“He started the fire to an unoccupied home that had no power to it,” Alabama Deputy Fire Marshal Scott Pilgreen said. “He did not own the property.”
Pilgreen would not comment on a motive.
Burleson has been an Opp firefighter for two years, officials said Monday.
He was booked into the Covington County Jail on a $20,000 bond and has since made bond.
In Alabama, a person can be found guilty of arson II if one intentionally damages a motor vehicle or building by starting a fire.
Arson II is a class B felony, which can carry a prison term up to 60 years.
Opp Fire Chief Joey Williams would not comment on Burleson’s status as a fire fighter and deferred all comments to the fire marshal’s office.
The incident remains under investigation, and The Star-News will update its readers as more information becomes available.
