Man accused of setting two Boardman fires

BOARDMAN

A 20-year-old Boardman man accused of setting fires near two township businesses is scheduled to appear in court today.

Raymond Lee Williams, of Clifton Drive, was arrested at about 11 a.m. Friday on warrants charging him with aggravated arson and arson, both felony offenses.

Williams was charged with aggravated arson relating to a July 20 fire at Smoker Friendly, 4927 Market St. Firefighters said two mattresses had been set on fire next to gas meters at the smoke shop sometime between 5 and 11 p.m.

“The first fire involved gas meters that actually ruptured gas lines, and they had to shut the gas off to the entire plaza. It did affect operations, and it could have set it all on fire,” said Fire Chief George Brown.

The second fire that Williams is accused of igniting occurred at about 2:30 a.m. July 25. In that case, a dumpster near Sleepy Hollow Mattress Outlet was ablaze. The outlet store is located at 4931 Market St. next to Smoker Friendly.

Dumpster fires “have caught buildings on fire before so they’re always a danger,” Brown said.