Published: July 11, 2008 09:09 am      

Danville man faces arson charges

One house fire was for gang initiation

DANVILLE — A gang initiation and simple enjoyment were the reasons behind two fires a Danville man is charged with.

Ernesto Vasquez, 17, of the 1000 block of North Hazel Street, appeared Thursday in Vermilion County Circuit Court for a preliminary hearing on two charges of arson.

The charges stem from two fires — one on June 16 at 205 Sidell St. and the other two days later at 304 Sidell St. — investigated by the police and fire departments.

Detective Bruce Stark said Vasquez told investigators during an interview that the fire at 205 Sidell St. was done as part of a street gang initiation for the Gangster Disciples. He set a couch and the rest of the home on fire.

The defendant’s reason for the blaze at 304 Sidell St., however, was totally different, according to Stark.

“He said he liked setting fires,” Stark told the court.

In the second fire, Vasquez told detectives he knocked over a gas tank in the garage of the home, which was being remodeled.

Damage to the homes was totaled at almost $40,000.

It was released earlier in the investigation that interviews led detectives to suspect Vasquez in both fires. Under questioning from defense attorney Aadam Alikhan, Stark said an interview with another man — James Porter — at the scene led them to Vasquez as well as a 15-year-old also arrested and charged in the arson cases.

Vasquez — who remains incarcerated on $20,000 bond — pleaded not guilty to the charges as part of Thursday’s hearing. A jury trial hearing is set for Sept. 15.

The arson charges, both Class 2 felonies, carry with them a maximum sentence of seven years in the Illinois Department of Corrections if Vasquez is found guilty.