Authorities say that a teenage volunteer firefighter had a hero complex after charging him yesterday with four counts of murder for setting a nearby home on fire with its family inside. 19-year-old Caleb Lacey knew that a neighboring family of his was inside the North Lawrence apartment building when he set it on fire with gasoline so that he could be the one to put it out.
Lacey was one of the first responders on the scene once the fire was underway. A Nassau County detective said, "The suspected motive is what arson experts call 'hero' or 'vanity'—to be the savior and appear to have saved individuals." Lacey was a new recruit in the department and they released a statement saying he had no incidents or history that indicated any warning signs to prohibit him from volunteering.
Lacey was arraigned yesterday and is being held without bail after confessing to the arson in a video statement. Outside the court yesterday, 76-year-old Yolanda Turcios, the grandmother of the three children who died in the blaze and mother of victim Morena Vanegas, was asked if she had anything to say to Lacey. She pointed to the sky and through an interpreter said, "Only God."
Caleb Lacey is said to have known the family and been friendly with them. Saul Preza, the 19-year-old who died, was once a classmate of his at Lawrence High School, where Caleb is a senior. His father, Reverend Richard Lacey had aided the surviving members of the victims' family during the cleanup and offered his church's resources following the blaze. Caleb Lacey attended the wake, shook family members' hands and offered his support.
