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$10K bail set for man accused of arson
The Superior Court has imposed a $10,000 cash bail on a man who is being accused of deliberately setting the former Mom’s Round Two Bar and Grill on fire last week.
Superior Court Associate judge Joseph Camacho imposed yesterday a $10,000 cash bail on Aurelio Reiong, the homeless man accused of setting ablaze the abandoned bar and grill in Garapan last week.
Reiong, 41, is facing charges of arson and related offenses.
Following the bail hearing yesterday, Reiong was remanded back to Department of Corrections custody and was ordered to return to court on Feb. 16, for a preliminary hearing. His arraignment was set for Feb. 27.
According to court documents, after interviewing the individual who called the Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services to report the incident, it was discovered that Reiong was the last person inside the abandoned building right after the fire began.
DFEMS’ Division of Fire Prevention and Arson stated that a witness told fire investigators that he saw Reiong go inside the abandoned building at around 1:25pm last Thursday and leave right after the fire started.
At around 2:50pm that same day, Fire investigators contacted police, stating that they were with the possible suspect, later identified as Reiong.
Reiong agreed to an interview with police and he allegedly admitted to the crime, stating that he had gone inside the building to drink water and then lit a cigarette.
Reiong stated that while inside, he saw a pile of paper and cardboard on the floor and took his already lit cigarette and burned the pile of trash inside.
He said that, after noting that the the fire had gotten bigger, he fled the building to go to the poker arcade across the street.
At around 7:14pm that same day, Reiong was brought to the Department of Corrections to be booked and detained.
According to Saipan Tribune archives, there were no fatalities and the fire did not find its way to neighboring establishments or structures.
DFEMS said the building sustained moderate to severe heat and smoke damage and the fire originated from the northern part of the structure and the fire was started from the inside.
