Man indicted, accused of setting apartment complex on fire, trapping 15 inside

ajc.com

A Washington Twp. man has been indicted after he was accused of setting an apartment complex on fire, trapping 15 people, including a child, inside the building.

Muhammad Hassan Khan, 24, was indicted Monday in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court on three counts of aggravated arson, according to a grand jury report.

Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched around 6:25 p.m. Feb. 21 to a domestic violence call at Chesapeake Landing off Yankee Street, but on the way the call was upgraded to arson.

When the Washington Twp. Fire Department arrived in the 8200 block of Hyannis Port Drive, they found heavy smoke coming from the 32-unit apartment building.

Muhammad Khan

Credit: Montgomery County Jail

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Credit: Montgomery County Jail

“Muhammad H. Khan did knowingly set fire to clothes inside a laundry room in an occupied structure. The fire spread to the hallway, blocking the exit for multiple apartment units,” an affidavit filed in Kettering Municipal Court stated.

Washington Twp. spokeswoman Kate Trangenstein said that firefighters had to rescue people from balconies using ladders, and one person was treated and released from a local hospital for smoke inhalation.

Trangenstein said the building was evacuated and that the fire displaced residents of 12 units, who were assisted by the American Red Cross.

Khan was outside when crews arrived and was taken into custody, the sheriff’s office said.

Khan is scheduled to be arraigned Aug. 13. He is free on a $750,000 bond and on electronic home monitoring.

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