Man accused of setting triple fatal fire in Inwood with discarded cigarette
INWOOD, Manhattan (WABC) -- The man police say caused a deadly fire in Inwood earlier this month made his initial court appearance on Tuesday afternoon.
Officials say 29-year-old Victor Arias started the blaze that took the lives of three people and injured more than a dozen others.
Arias was arrested Monday on charges of criminally negligent homicide.
Five people were left in critical condition after the fire, including several children.
It broke out on the first floor of the six-story residential building around 12:30 in the morning last Monday.
Dozens of residents were trapped on fire escapes when firefighters arrived.
FDNY investigators say the suspect deliberately discarded a lit cigarette into cardboard boxes, causing them to ignite.
That fire then quickly spread through the common hallway and then a stairway of the building, rocketing up through the roof.
Arias was released following the appearance but he cannot travel outside of New York City.
Officials say he lived in the building with his mother and sister and had lived the same apartment his entire life. He has no arrest history.
His next court date is set for June 5.
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