A New York man is under fire for committing arson to collect on his insurance policy.
Donald Kropp, 33, set fire to a downstairs bedroom in his family's home in July in an attempt to collect on the $500,000 insurance policy he held on the house. The two-story frame sustained heavy smoke, water, and fire damage, but the majority of the damage was contained to the first floor -- thanks to the work of an estimated 75 firefighters who were called in.
No one was home at the time of the fire, so there were no injuries to the family. Two of the firefighters, however, were not so lucky. The firefighters were injured while fighting the blaze, adding two counts of second-degree assault to Kropp's list of charges. The other charges he faces include third-degree arson, second-degree insurance fraud, and first-degree reckless endangerment.
Following his arraignment, Kropp was remanded to the Otsego Correctional Facility in lieu of $10,000 bail, and will return to court for trial.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.