LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) – A Lexington man has been indicted on 19 felonies and two misdemeanors including multiple arsons and burglary charges.
The man has been identified as Robert Stevens. He was arrested in July for allegedly causing two fires and was indicted in the following months.
The charges stem from 12 fires that investigators believe Stevens set on Goodloe and Warnock streets over a 10-month period, starting in Sept. 2017 until his arrest in July 2018.
“A serial arsonist is defined as a fire-setter who sets three or more fires with a significant cooling off period between fires,” said Lexington Fire Chief Kristin Chilton. “We believe Stevens meets the classification of a serial arsonist based on the pattern of fires set.”
The fires were set at three different residential properties and one commercial property. Two properties suffered significant damage and had to be demolished. The two remaining properties suffered moderate damage.
Lexington Fire Investigators invested hundreds of hours over the last year, collecting evidence, interviewing witnesses, and surveilling the area, Chilton said. Fire Investigators believe Stevens acted alone in committing these crimes.
“Everything discovered during the investigation pointed to the fact that Stevens would have continued setting fires and endangering lives until caught,” Chilton said. “We believe Lexington is safer now that he has been identified and stopped.”
