Firefighter Charged With Arson In Locke Mills Fires

LOCKE MILLS (NEWS CENTER) -- The State Fire Marshall's Office says they have charged a volunteer firefighter with two counts of arson in connection with overnight fires that destroyed two vacant houses in Locke Mills on Tuesday.

Jeffrey A. Tyler, 28, of Bethel is charged with setting fire to one of the buildings. The fire spread to a neighboring house. Both buildings were destroyed.

Crews were called to the scene around 3:00 AM on Tuesday.  On arrival two buildings and a barn were up in flames. 

Firefighters say they quickly realized this was not an accidental blaze.  They say their biggest clue was the fact that no one was living there, and that no one was supposed to be in the vicinity of the buildings.

Tyler, a former volunteer firefighter with the Greenwood Fire Department, was taken to the Oxford County Jail.