Man Charged in 2011 Arson Fire That Killed Three People

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- A Fair Haven man has been charged with killing three people, including an 8-year-old child, in a 2011 arson fire in which survivors threw children from windows to neighbors below in an effort to save their lives.

Authorities say the fire was lit "in part as retaliation for failure to pay a drug debt" by someone living in the house.

"Somebody's got to pay for the three deaths," said neighbor Mark Andrews. "They said the way the fire started, they (victims) were blocked off and they couldn't get out nowhere. They just sat there and burned."

The suspect's father also was indicted for his alleged role in helping his son cover his tracks.

Hector Natal, 26, was indicted by a federal grand jury on three counts of arson causing death, in addition to counts of conspiracy to distribute narcotics, conspiracy to tamper with a witness and witness tampering.

His father, Hector Morales, 50, was indicted on counts of narcotics and witness tampering conspiracy and additional charges of destruction and concealment of evidence. He allegedly acted as his son's driver during drug activity and painted his Dodge minivan in the days after the fire, when stories surfaced about a blue minivan leaving the fire scene.

Natal had been in federal custody since last year on drug offenses for which he pleaded guilty in October.

Morales, 50, appeared Thursday in Bridgeport Federal Court. A judge held him without bail, for now, until his defense attorney can revisit the topic.

"This indictment alleges that Hector Natal set fire to a home where families and children lived, resulting in the deaths of three innocent people, including two women and a young boy," said U.S. Attorney David Fein. "As alleged, Natal committed this act in part to further his drug trade."

The arson happened at 48-50 Wolcott St., at the corner of Poplar Street. A mother, her son and her niece all died, trapped by fire, killed by smoke and badly burned.

"Mr. Morales adamantly denies these charges," his attorney, Frank O'Reilly, said after the court appearance. "It's his position that these charges are unfounded as well as the charges against his son."

Federal authorities first publicly linked Natal to the fatal arson last year, when he appeared in federal court to face the drug charges.

The indictment revealed a timeline leading up to the fire. From March 1 to March 8, Natal made a large number of phone calls to a person living at 50 Wolcott St. On March 8, between 11:22 p.m. to 11:30, there were three more.

From 11:30 p.m. March 8 to 12:30 a.m. March 9, Morales drove Natal to a home in the Hill neighborhood to collect money owed for drugs.

Then, according to the indictment, at 1:15 a.m., Natal set fire to the two-family home.

Morales later drove Natal to Natal's girlfriend's house on Haven Street.

In court Thursday, Deputy U.S. Attorney Deirdre Daily said that while Morales was not charged with the arson, he was there at the beginning as he drove his son to pick up drug money in the Hill, was there in the middle, picking up his son after he lit the fire, and there at the end, cajoling witnesses to lie to the grand jury investigating the case.

In the drug case, on March 29, several weeks after the fatal fire, Natal sold about 36 grams of crack cocaine for $1,800 to an individual working with law enforcement, federal authorities have said. It was during that time that Natal allegedly made admissions, which were secretly recorded, about his involvement in the fire.

The fire killed three people: Wanda Roberson, 41; her son, Quayshawn Roberson, 8; and niece, JaQueeta Roberson, 21.

Investigators concluded an accelerant was poured on a staircase and that the three family members were trapped on the third floor of the house.

The dramatic blaze generated neighborhood heroes. People trapped in the burning house tossed children from windows to neighbors below who had come to their aid. Others climbed onto a porch roof to escape the raging flames.

Andrews, the neighbor, remembered Quayshawn as a "good little kid" he'd see riding his bike up and down the street.

"I'm glad they finally got somebody and I'm glad it's from over that way," said neighbor Marilyn Rey, gesturing to Poplar Street, "because that is a troubled street. It's about time they caught somebody."

In an interview after his son's June 2011 drug arrest, Morales proclaimed his son's innocence in the fire.

Natal's girlfriend said both she and Natal's father took polygraph tests in 2011. The questioning centered on a Dodge minivan owned by Morales that matched the description of a vehicle seen leaving before the fire was reported on Wolcott.

Morales told the Register that agents pressed him about the minivan he owned and why he painted it in the days or weeks after the blaze. Morales said he painted the van because he was planning to sell it, but said agents accused him of lying.

The van remained parked in front of Morales' house on Poplar Street Thursday, with sections of blue paint showing through black primer Morales used to paint it.

Fifteen people lived in the building at the time of the fatal fire. Eleven were hospitalized for smoke inhalation following the blaze.

McClatchy-Tribune News Service