Police arrest local man for arson

A local man was arrested Monday after he allegedly set a car on fire last week.

Eric H. Ripley, 21, of County Route 10 in Whitehall, was charged with third-degree arson and first-degree reckless endangerment, both felonies. He was also charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief and a reckless endangerment charge related to property, both misdemeanors.

Ripley is accused of throwing a large rock through the window of a 2000 Subaru Legacy parked on Fifth Avenue and then setting it ablaze at 12:48 a.m. on Friday.

Ripley is the ex-boyfriend of the car’s owner, police said. A neighbor awoke to find the car on fire and several bystanders tried to use a garden hose to suppress the blaze until the Whitehall Volunteer Fire Company arrived.

Police linked Ripley to the fire through witness accounts, and the investigation continues, police said.

Ripley was arrested on Monday morning, arraigned in Whitehall Village Court, and sent to Washington County Correctional Facility for lack of $30,000 cash bail or $60,000 bond.

The case was handled by Whitehall Patrolman Rand Bevins and the Washington County Bureau of Fire Investigations. Whitehall Sgt. Richard LaChapelle made the arrest.

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Tags: Bevins, Bystanders, Car On Fire, Criminal Mischief, Degree Arson, Felonies, Fifth Avenue, First Degree, Garden Hose, Lachapelle, Misdemeanors, Police Arrest, Reckless Endangerment, Ripley, Subaru Legacy, Third Degree, Volunteer Fire Company, Washington County Correctional Facility, Whitehall, Witness Accounts