HARTFORD — A Connecticut man has been convicted of setting fire to the home where his family lived after they confronted him about his drug use.
The Hartford Courant reports that 37-year-old Angel Ares was found guilty at a bench trial Monday of first-degree arson and other charges for the February 2018 blaze in Hartford.
Eight adults and four children were inside the three-family home when Ares, angry that his family confronted him about his chronic PCP use, set fire to a mattress on the front porch. The fire spread quickly and Ares’ mother suffered smoke inhalation.
One firefighter was also injured.
According to a police report, his stepbrother says Ares was smoking too much PCP and the family was calling an ambulance for him two or three times a week.