Teen charged in Shadyside fire claimed he was hero

A teen accused of igniting a fire in Shadyside early Monday tried to tell investigators he was a “hero.”

Pittsburgh police charged James Casson, 18, of Shadyside with arson, risking a catastrophe, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief in connection with the 2:30 a.m. fire in the 900 block of Maryland Avenue.

Firefighters Keith Ott, Jeff Loeffert and Ben Sovyak were injured when flames flashed while they were searching for victims, according to a criminal complaint against Casson. Loeffert suffered second-degree burns on his neck, and Sovyak had second-degree burns on his neck, face and a leg. Both went to UPMC Mercy, city arson Detective Michael Burns said.

Ott suffered a broken hand and second-degree burns on his neck and was treated at West Penn Hospital. All three were released from the hospitals, Burns said.

The homeowner, Michael Iannone, escaped the fire unharmed, the complaint said. The third-floor tenant was out of town at the time.

Casson has lived next door at Residential Care Services Inc., a group home for adults with mental health issues, for six days, executive director Beth Monteverde said.

Casson told firefighters at the scene that he was sleeping in his room at the house when he smelled something burning and saw the fire on the roof next door, the complaint said. He said he eventually climbed onto the roof and saw the gutter on fire, so he alerted the other tenants in his home.

He “kept saying that he was the hero,” the complaint said.

But a neighbor in another building, identified as Pratik Patel, told police he saw a white man on the roof setting towels on fire and throwing them onto the roof of the house next door, igniting the blaze, police said.

When detectives asked Casson about the towels, he told them he didn't do it, and when police said there was a witness, Casson “became very upset and belligerent and requested a lawyer,” the complaint said. Police arrested him at the scene and took him to the Allegheny County Jail.

Seven people diagnosed with mental health issues and referred by the county stay at the group home, which teaches daily living skills to residents, Monteverde said. Staff work at the home 24 hours a day, she said.

“You can't keep eyes on seven people simultaneously all the time,” Monteverde said. “The difficult news is the extensive damage next door. I've been with the agency 21 years, and we've never had an incident.”

Margaret Harding is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at 412-380-8519 or mharding@tribweb.com.