Lakeview Man Charged With Arson For Setting Alley Couch On Fire

By Rachel Cromidas in News on May 25, 2016 3:27PM

Colin Weis, CPD handout photo

A Lakeview man was accused of setting a couch on fire in an alley near the Belmont CTA train station Tuesday.

Colin Weis, 24, who lives around the block from the CTA station on North Clark Street, was charged with arson early Tuesday morning after he allegedly set the couch on fire around 2:50 a.m. in the 900 block of West Belmont Avenue. Police said in a statement that officers saw Weis ignite the couch while it was next to recycled oil from a nearby restaurant. Police contacted the Fire Department, the alert says, and there was minimal damage from the fire and no one was reported as injured.

Weis is slated to appear in Central Bond Court at the Cook County Criminal Courthouse Wednesday where he will be arraigned on the charge.

Lakeview has been having a problem with fires lately, so it's good to hear that damage to the area around this alley fire was minimal. Last week, a fire on West Cornelia Street displaced 8 people. Earlier this month, an extra-alarm fire displaced 30 people, and in April, a fire on North Janssen Avenue caused several people to jump out of the 3rd floor window of their home. Authorities have not suggested that any of the fires are related.