http://news.excite.com:80/news/uw/010119/university-58

Former TCU student charged with arson



Updated 12:00 PM ET January 19, 2001


  By Ram Luthra
  Daily Skiff
  Texas Christian U.

  (U-WIRE) FORT WORTH, Texas -- A former Texas Christian University student
  and another individual have been charged for arson in connection with the
fire at the
  Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Delta Tau Delta fraternity house, according to a
Fort
  Worth police report.

  Vernon Rowe III, 21, and Matthew Taylor, 19, are suspects in connection with
an
  Aug. 11 fire at the Martin-Moore Residence Hall on 3504 Pond Drive on the
TCU
  campus.

  Although both Rowe and Taylor were charged and posted $5,000 bail, as of
  Wednesday, the district attorney's office has not accepted the case yet.

  At the time of the incident, Rowe was the president of the Sigma Nu
fraternity.
  Sigma Nu is a fraternity located off campus and is not officially recognized
by TCU.

  No one was injured in the fire, which caused about $1,000 worth of damages,
  according to the police report.

  Rowe and Taylor were both arrested in December. Investigation of the arson
was
  prolonged because of lack of cooperation from the suspects and witnesses,
fire
  officials said.

  Sabino Vasquez, arson investigator for the Fort Worth Fire Department, said
the
  investigation was hampered because the suspect is a member of a close-knit
  fraternity.

  "This case was harder because of the nature of fraternities," Vasquez said.
"All the
  people involved showed a great amount of loyalty and camaraderie to each
other,
  which made it harder on us to gather facts."

  Mark Lane, Rowe's attorney, said the investigation was performed in a
haphazard
  manner and questions the tactics used by the TCU law enforcement
authorities.

  "The investigation has not been performed in a professional and thorough
manner,"
  Lane said.

  Fire officials said a fight that took place at a bar and continued to a gas
station near
  the TCU campus prior to the fire was the main catalyst for the blaze of the
fraternity
  house. Officials at the scene found tire tread marks on the lawn by the
building. Fire
  officials and police authorities confirm that the tracks are from a truck
that had been
  intentionally driven over the lawn.

  The fire started when a combustible liquid engulfed the porch of the
building and
  was later sparked with matches, fire officials said. The police report cited
that a
  large rock was thrown through a glass doorway.

  "The suspect's intention was to set the whole building on fire," Vasquez
said.

  Rowe refused to comment on the incident but said the charges on him are
  illegitimate. He forwarded all further questions to his attorney.

  Lane said his client is not responsible for igniting the fire. He said Rowe
is innocent
  and will fight the charges.

  "We have been investigating the incident and taking many witnesses'
statements,"
  Lane said. "All the statements indicate that (Rowe) did not have any
criminal
  culpability in regards to the crime he has been charged with."

  Lane said he is confident of Rowe's innocence.

  "(Rowe) will be happy to take a polygraph exam and answer any questions
  regarding the charges made on him," Lane said.

  Rowe, who was registered for classes in the fall, is not currently
registered for any
  courses in the spring semester, according to the Registrar's office.

  Taylor, the other suspect, faces charges of arson on the Martin-Moore
building and
  an automobile. Taylor has been charged by the district attorney's office for
setting
  fire to a 1995 Pontiac Firebird the same night. The car was parked on 3202
  Cockrell Ave.

  The automobile belonged to Michael Farris. Farris said he did not know why
  anyone would set his car on fire.

  Farris, a sophomore premajor, said his car was totaled. About $10,000 worth
of
  damages were estimated, according to the police report.

  (C) 2001 Daily Skiff via U-WIRE

Doug Gordner, Life Safety Inspector
Ithaca College Campus Safety
Life Safety Division
101 Safety Building
Ithaca, New York 14850
(607)-274-1846
(607)-274-1868 (fax)
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CFSI-1
Member:
National Fire Sprinkler Association (NFSA)
International Society of Fire Service Instructors (ISFSI)