Credit: Middletown police
Tips from the public led police to charge a 20-year-old Levittown man with arson, risking a catastrophe, criminal mischief, loitering and prowling at nighttime and related offenses.
Kyle Robert Morris was arraigned Saturday morning before District Judge Michael Gallagher. He was sent to Bucks County lockup on 10 percent of $50,000 bail.
Advertisements
Middletown police said Morris lit fireworks on the porch of an occupied home on Forsythia Drive North around 11 p.m. on the Fourth of July. The fireworks burnt for under two minutes and could have caused a fire that destroyed or damaged the house.
Morris, according to police, fled the area in a vehicle.
According to a press release, police used tips from the public to identify Morris. They also viewed surveillance video from the ShopRite on Bristol Road in Bensalem that showed Morris purchasing $42.38 in fireworks, including the device set off outside the Levittown home.
Advertisements
Officer Kyle Gracie and other officers executed a search warrant Saturday morning at Morris’ home and found the shirt and sneakers spotted in the surveillance video on the night of the fireworks incident.
Morris was reportedly taken into custody without incident.
Advertisements
Morris gave police a “full statement as to the events” of the Fourth of July, the press release stated.
“Middletown Township Police would like to remind the community of the dangers of all fireworks. In recent years residents have sustained injuries, severe injuries and one fatal injury from fireworks. Even the ground display sparklers sold to the general public burn at extreme temperatures and can easily result in injuries, burns and ignite fires,” police said.
The latest incident in Middletown comes about a month after fireworks were blamed for an arson fire in Falls Township.
Advertisements
Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.
