A former Belvedere volunteer firefighter, jailed since July on arson charges, has been indicted in a January fire that injured five firefighters.
Deputy State Fire Marshal Alan Brown said a grand jury handed down an indictment Monday on Carl M. Francis charging him with first-degree arson, burglary, 10 counts of first-degree reckless endangering, three counts of first-degree assault and two counts of third-degree assault.
Francis, 25, of Wilmington, remains jailed in the Young Correctional Institution. Brown said the Jan. 5 fire in a two-story home in the 500 block of Homestead Road displaced eight residents.
Seven firefighters were trapped on the home's second floor after the fire burned through their hose and cut off their water supply. A rapid intervention team with breathing equipment rescued the crew.
Francis was arrested on July 23 and charged with three counts of first-degree arson, one count of second-degree arson, 12 counts of reckless endangering, four counts of burglary and one count of impersonating a firefighter for setting several fires throughout New Castle County dating back to 2003.
His bail was set at the time at $255,000.
The fires happened on Aug. 6, 2003, at 3002 West Street in Wilmington, Dec. 7, 2007, at 101 Julianne court in Newport, and on Jan. 3 at 610 and 629 Homestead Road.
He's still under investigation in other arsons, Brown said.
Republished with permission of The News Journal.
