A man was arrested Monday and accused of setting fire to a house he owned in Romeoville that was in the midst of being foreclosed, police said.
Anthony J. Hubbard, 45, was charged with felony arson and criminal damage to property in connection to the incident.
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The Will County jail website states that Hubbard’s home address is in Chicago, but Romeoville police Commander John Ferdinardo said Hubbard owned and lived in the house in the 1500 block of Amaryllis Drive.
The Lockport Township Fire Protection District was called to the scene at about 9:30 a.m. Monday, after a passerby noticed smoke coming out of the front door, according to Fire Chief David Skoryi.
Firefighters entered the vacant residence and found “high levels of heat and smoke from floor to ceiling,” but also a fire that was burning itself out, he said.
Firefighters noticed burn patterns that suggested the fire “wasn’t a naturally occurring incident,” Skoryi said.
Ferdinardo said that the house sustained no structural damage in the fire.
Hubbard had left the house that morning with his daughter and dog, Ferdinardo said.
Hubbard returned to the residence while authorities were still on the scene, Ferdinardo said.
“During the investigation, he admitted to setting the fire,” Ferdinardo said.
The house was in foreclosure, Ferdinardo said, but he did not know where the process stood as of Monday.
Another party showed up at the house Monday morning claiming ownership, he said.
Hubbard could not be reached for comment.
Will County court records show an Anthony J. Hubbard, with an address in the 1500 block of Amaryllis Drive, being the defendant in a foreclosure action that began in 2009 and ended in December.
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