Teens charged with arson
By SARAH SUTSCHEK - ssutschek@nwherald.com
McHENRY – Two teenagers have been charged with arson after an RV was destroyed and a farmhouse was damaged by fire over the weekend.
The teens, 15- and 16-year-old boys from McHenry, were charged with two counts each of criminal trespass to a residence and arson. One remains in custody; the other was released to his parents, Johnsburg police Chief Kenneth Rydberg said.
Lamar C. Price, 18, of McHenry also was charged with criminal trespassing. He posted 10 percent of a $1,000 bond and was released.
Emergency crews were dispatched about 4:40 p.m. to a structure fire in the 4300 block of McCullom Lake Road, near the train tracks. Before crews arrived, witnesses on a nearby bike path observed the three teens leaving the property on foot. They were detained a short distance away at Petersen Park, Rydberg said.
None of the boys lived on the property, Rydberg said. He declined to comment further because the incident remained under investigation.
McHenry Township Fire Chief Wayne Amore said fire crews were on the scene for about three hours working on the two-story farmhouse. Both it and the RV had been set on fire, he said.
“The vehicle was pretty much gone when we got there, and we concerned ourselves with trying to save the building,” Amore said. “It was balloon construction, old-fashioned construction, so it just goes right up the wall.”
The house, which sits about a half-mile from the road, had been abandoned, he said. There were no injuries.
“Structurally, the building looked pretty tight,” Amore said. “It wasn’t falling down by any means. It looked like it was still in pretty good shape.”
