More details are emerging about the fire that gutted the Good Neighbor Place Thrift Store last month, causing hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.
The suspect, Curtis Laron Rouse, 38, was arrested and charged with first degree arson and unarmed burglary of an unoccupied structure.
He is currently being held in the Orange County Jail on a $10,000 bond for the arson charge and a $5,000 bond on the burglary charge, according to jail records.
Good Neighbor Place is a community outreach of the Apopka Seventh-day Adventist Church on East Votaw Road. Owner Dr. Dean Behner leases the property, located at 199 S. Park Avenue, to the church to operate the thrift store. He estimated damages from the fire to be about $200,000-$300,000, according to the Apopka police report.
Rouse is a known transient who frequents the area, the police report said.
Good Neighbor Place director Ingrid Mergenthaler said that a box of sports cards was taken, and two cash registers were missing, according to the police report. The report also said she was compiling an itemized list of property that were stolen or damaged and would be willing to press charges and submit a sworn written statement in the future.
Many objects including blankets, clothes, pillows, jewelry and baseball cards were discovered behind the First Methodist Church of Apopka, across the street from the thrift store. Good Neighbor Place staff confirmed that all of those items came from the store.
Along with the stolen items discovered behind the Methodist church “was a light-colored shirt with a logo and/or writing on the back consistent with the shirt worn by the suspect,” the police report said, and shopping bags bearing the name “Curtis Rouse.”
At 3:46 p.m. on May 21, Rouse was found at the Apopka Bike Station and was detained. He was taken to the Apopka Police Department for further investigation. The detective who investigated the case and interviewed Rouse determined that the suspect “knowingly entered” the thrift store to take clothes and blankets, the police report said.
“During the commission of the felony burglary, and immediately after the suspect exited the building, the fire ensued from the same point of entry and exit,” the police report said. “Therefore, Rouse violated Florida State Statute 810.02(4)(a) – Burglary unoccupied Structure and 806.01(1) – Arson 1st Degree.”
The AFD responded to the thrift store fire at approximately 5:30 a.m. on May 21.
“Upon arrival, our crews encountered a commercial structure with significant fire involvement,” a statement from the AFD said. “The fire was quickly contained and extinguished, preventing further damage. The building was unoccupied at the time of the incident and no injuries were reported.”
In addition to helping low-income families, Good Neighbor Place lends the property to SALT (Service and Love Together) Outreach, a homeless outreach organization, to provide those in need monthly mobile services, including showers.
The State of Florida Fire Marshal’s Office is currently investigating the cause of the fire.
The Apopka Chief and The Planter are weekly community newspapers, independently owned and family operated, that have served the greater Apopka area in Central Florida since 1923 and 1965 respectively.
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