The owner of the Hamilton house where firefighter Patrick Wolterman died a year ago was arrested Monday afternoon.
Lester Parker, 66, was charged with murder and aggravated arson in connection with the Dec. 28, 2015 fire where Wolterman died after he fell through the floor of the 2 1/2-story home.
“This case is still an active investigation … and I am confident this will not be the last arrest,” Hamilton Police Chief Craig Bucheit told local television station WHIO. “We’re just happy to deliver this small piece of closure.”
Parker will be arraigned Tuesday in Butler County Common Pleas Court.
Since the initial investigation, Parker said he and his wife, Bertha, has left house shortly before the fire was discovered when police arrived at the house for a burglar alarm.
Wolterman was among the Hamilton firefighters who responded to the fire around 1:30 a.m.
The fire weakened the floor and Wolterman fell though the first floor to the basement.
Investigators from the Hamilton Police Department, Ohio State Fire Marshal's Office, and ATF sifted through clues over the last year.
“On Dec. 28, 2015, the city of Hamilton lost a true hero, firefighter Patrick Wolterman,” Hamilton Public Safety Director Scott Scrimizzi said. “Today is bittersweet for us as there has been an arrest in Patrick’s murder.”
“I hope if he is guilty they throw the book at the (expletive),” neighbor Linda Wroblewsk told the Journal-News after learning about Parker's arrest. “We lost a fireman in that, and that wasn’t fair. I mean, that guy, his wife lost her husband.”
“If he’s guilty, I pray to God he goes to jail and they never let him out again,” Wroblewski said.
