Credit: Bensalem Police
A former Levittown firefighter already charged with armed robbery and an arson fire in Bensalem is facing additional charges in relation to two additional blazes in Bristol Township.
Nicholas Ricciardi, 21, of Idlewood Road in Bristol Township, was arraigned on charges of reckless burning of property that exceeds $5,000, risking a catastrophe and other offenses on Friday.
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Ricciardi is charged with setting fire to a mattress and an abandoned boat in the woods behind the PECO substation at Mill Creek and Edgely roads on Febuary 1, according to court documents. Police said the volunteer firefighter even called in the fire to county dispatchers and stayed around to watch as fire crews reach the flames.
Residents of nearby homes said they say several small fires in the woods by the power substation in the weeks leading up to the boat fire. Court documents do not mention the fires, and it is not known at this time if Ricciardi was involved.
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On February 18, Ricciardi started a fire in a wooded area near George Washington Elementary School, police said.
Riccardi along with two others were charged in early April with setting fire to the Croydon Mansion, a 237-year-old historic house on Gibson Road in Bensalem, just before 12:30 p.m. on February 22. The three young men are awaiting charges in the Bensalem case.
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According to court documents, Ricciardi used his training from the fire department to learn how and where to start fires and make sure they would burn for intended periods of time. The volunteer firefighter told investigators he enjoyed watching the fires burn, but he knew his actions were dangerous and illegal.
The 21-year-old is alleged to be part of the “Black Flag Family” gang, which robbed a teenage or marijuana in early 2013, police said. He currently is awaiting a preliminary hearing in that case.
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