DOVER, Pa. — Two Harrisburg men are facing charges after police an alleged act of vengeance against a York County man who had recently ended a relationship with one of their friends, authorities claim in charging documents.
Jacob Adams, 28, and Nicholas Burtner, 31, are accused of firing multiple gunshots at the man's home before setting it on fire with a gasoline-soaked rag on Oct. 4.
But the man they were targeting was not home at the time, police said. Instead, the house was occupied by a woman who was house-sitting for him while he was out of town.
The woman was not injured, according to police.
Adams and Burtner are charged with attempted homicide and multiple counts of criminal conspiracy to commit attempted homicide, aggravated assault, arson and risking a catastrophe, according to criminal complaint affidavits filed by Northern York County Regional Police.
Burtner is also charged with prohibited possession of a firearm, carrying a firearm without a license and discharging a firearm into an occupied structure, according to charging documents.
Neither suspect was in custody as of Nov. 27.
The woman inside the house was watching the property for the homeowner, who had recently broken up with a female friend of the suspects and had taken out a Protection From Abuse Order against her a few weeks before, police said.
Police began investigating at about 12:48 a.m. on Oct. 4, when they were dispatched to the 4700 block of Carlisle Road for a reported fire.
The female occupant of the home called the police and said the sound of gunshots awakened her and soon noticed the house was on fire.
She told police she was watching the home for a friend while he was visiting his family in another state.
Police contacted the homeowner, who reported that he'd recently ended a relationship with a woman and had changed the locks at his house after noticing a set of his keys had gone missing. He did not change the lock to his basement door, which used a skeleton key to open, the homeowner reported. That key had also gone missing, he told police.
According to charging documents, the homeowner said he always kept the basement door locked, but police found it unlocked during their fire investigation.
Investigators found multiple places inside the home where fires were started, including in the basement. They also found a rag that had been soaked with gasoline in a pile of debris stacked against the back of the house, with an "obvious pour pattern" of flammable liquid on the ground leading to the debris.
Police also found three spent shell casings from a .40-caliber firearm in the road outside the house.
Three bullets were found inside a neighbor's home, according to police.
Investigators obtained surveillance footage from a neighbor's home that showed a Jeep Cherokee approach the 4700 block of Carlisle Road. Three shots were seen originating from the Jeep's passenger window, police said. The vehicle is then seen traveling north on Carlisle Road before turning onto Harmony Grove Road.
Investigators then made contact with the homeowner's ex-girlfriend, who lives in Upper Allen Township in Cumberland County. The woman denied being anywhere near Dover Township on the night of the fire, claiming she went out on a late-night run to Rutter's to get food for her son's lunch the next day.
The woman claimed she left at about 11:35 p.m. on Oct. 3 and returned home at 1:15 a.m. on Oct. 4. Surveillance footage from a Mechanicsburg Rutter's store - which showed her at the business with another man - and cell phone records appeared to corroborate her claims, as did an account of the night provided by another woman at the home, charging documents state.
Investigators noted they did not tell the woman any information about the arson investigation, and noted she "seemed to be getting anxious" when police asked for additional details in their interview, according to the complaint.
On Nov. 15, investigators said, the man seen with the woman at the Rutter's store contacted authorities to provide additional information about the case. The man claimed he gave her a ride to Rutter's, and said she had gone there to "create an alibi" for herself.
The witness claimed she had told him that two of her friends, "D" and "Rundown" were committing the arson and that she wanted to be seen on surveillance video far from the scene.
The witness also claimed he was at the woman's home the next day, when "D" and "Rundown" were present, and said he overheard them discussing the arson.
The woman routinely asked the witness to look for online updates about the case on the day after the fire, the witness told police.
He claimed the woman told him that "D" and "Rundown" - later identified through Facebook photos as Burtner and Adams, respectively - borrowed her car to drive to York County before switching vehicles, taking Adams' sister's Cherokee to the victim's home.
Adams' sister later confirmed that her brother had borrowed the Jeep on the night of the fire, police said.
Investigators spoke to another friend of the woman, who is a firefighter. He claimed the woman contacted him through social media to ask about the fire. She allegedly asked "vague questions" about whether investigators can determine where fires start and whether they were natural or intentionally set, according to the complaint.
Police served a search warrant at the woman's home on Nov. 22, where they conducted another interview.
In the second interview, the woman admitted she'd told the suspects about her break-up with the victim, claiming domestic violence had been a factor. The suspects, whom the woman claimed were staying at her home without her permission, "took interest" in her story and offered to protect her, she claimed.
On the night of the fire, the woman reported that Burtner and Adams took her car. Later that night, she claimed, Burtner texted her and told her she had 10 minutes to get on surveillance cameras somewhere to create an alibi. He also told her two addresses "where they might be hiding if something happened," she reported.
The woman told police she called her friend to take her to Rutters.
When she returned that night, the woman claimed, she went through the suspects' belongings, removing drugs and bullets and hiding them in a wooded area behind her home.
Burtner called her early on Oct. 4 and said "The deed was done," and admitted to shooting at her ex-boyfriend's home and setting it on fire, the woman told police. When they returned to her home at about 5 a.m., she told police, they seemed "happy" with what they had done.
The woman told police she later took the gun used in the shooting from Burtner and hid it.
She told police she had initially misled them when they first contacted her about the fire because Burtner and Adams were present, and were "coaching" her on what to say, according to the complaint.
Police seized the woman's cell phone for a forensic examination and found text messages between her and Burtner where they professed their love for one another -- contrary to her claims that he was living at her home without permission, the complaint states.
Phone records also revealed Burtner texted the woman at about 9 p.m. on Oct. 3 to let her know he and Adams were at Adams' sister's home to switch vehicles.
Shortly after 1 a.m. on Oct. 4, police said, Burtner texted the woman a photo of her ex-boyfriend's home on fire. The woman allegedly responded by asking for additional photos and videos.
In another text to Burtner, the woman said she was worried about his safety and told him to put an Airtag locator in his pocket "in case of emergency." Police said the Airtag records showed Burtner was in Dover Township at about 3 a.m. on Oct. 4.
At about 3:40 a.m. on Oct. 4, Burtner texted the woman to tell her he was “protective and passionate and not afraid of anything," according to police.
Burtner and Adams left the woman's home on Oct. 17, investigators determined.
Neither suspect is currently in custody. No charges against the victim's ex-girlfriend have been filed as of Nov. 27.
