Authorities report that a 21‑year‑old employee of ShopRite in Staten Island was taken into custody after allegedly lighting a large fire that damaged more than $100,000 of the store’s property just before Thanksgiving.
The FDNY said the suspect, Dominick Sacchetti, was apprehended on Wednesday after being filmed on shop cameras starting a blaze on November 26 in the busy Greaves Lane aisle where shoppers were already scrambling to stock up for the holiday. According to the fire department, the fire erupted on a shelf full of paper goods.
Video released by officials shows flames leaping up the aisle and a pile of paper towels tumbling to the floor. The blaze spread quickly, but a quick‑acting customer grabbed a fire extinguisher and reduced the inferno before it could grow any larger.
No injuries were reported, though officials noted the fire caused over $100,000 in damage.
“While residents of Staten Island were beginning to prepare for Thanksgiving with their families, this individual put the lives of shoppers and responding firefighters at risk,” FDNY Commissioner Robert S. Tucker said in a statement. “Thanks to the dedicated work of our Fire Marshals, this dangerous individual who put lives at risk has been apprehended,” he added.
Sachetti faces charges that include multiple counts of arson, two counts of reckless endangerment and two counts of criminal mischief. Richmond County District Attorney Michael E. McMahon said, “Alleged to have set fire to a busy ShopRite grocery aisle late last month, Dominick Sacchetti needlessly put countless Staten Islanders who were simply shopping for food for their families, as well as essential ShopRite workers, in harm’s way.”
“Acts of arson that endanger the lives of our fellow residents will not be tolerated here on Staten Island, and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” the DA added.
The suspect’s bail was set at $50,000 in cash and a $100,000 bond.
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