Bizarre, Fiery Canyon Lake Dispute: Man Accused Of Igniting Home

CANYON LAKE, CA — A Canyon Lake man is facing arson and other felony charges after allegedly setting his neighbor's house on fire using a road flare — again — and then leading authorities on a chase along local freeways. David Brian Harry, 45, was arrested Wednesday after allegedly igniting the fires in the 28000 block of Yosemite Place.

Along with the two counts of arson, Harry is charged with attempted murder and felony evading, as well as sentence-enhancing allegations of maliciously using a special device and committing a crime while on bail. He's now locked up at the downtown Riverside jail and was slated to appear in court Friday afternoon.

According to sheriff's Sgt. Curt Harris, a Canyon Lake woman was startled Thursday afternoon by a loud noise which she first thought was an earthquake. However, it was her enraged neighbor, according to authorities.

"Seconds later, a wooden stake crashed through her living room window, followed by a burning road flare," Harris said in a news release. "The flare ignited the interior of her house, burning the window blinds and carpet."

The unidentified woman managed to grab the flare and threw it onto her driveway before the flames spread further, the sergeant said. She headed outside and was greeted by Harry.

"When the victim screamed at Harry to stop, he yelled several expletives and made vulgar comments about her," Harris said. "At the same time, he ignited another road flare and set the victim’s wooden fence ablaze."

The woman grabbed her garden hose and knocked the flames down, but her fence was "permanently damaged," Harris said.

The sergeant said Harry then jumped into his pickup truck and sped away from the location, and sheriff's deputies quickly caught up to him on a road between Canyon Lake and Lake Elsinore. The defendant soon transitioned to Interstate 15, heading northbound, where California Highway Patrol officers took over the pursuit, Curtis said.

The officers partially disabled Harry's truck tires on the 15 freeway, but he managed to continue at slow speed on the road. Curtis said the chase stopped in the area of Featherly Park in Yorba Linda, where the pickup gave out.

"Harry refused officers' commands to surrender, but he was eventually placed under arrest after a brief struggle from resisting their attempts to detain him," Curtis said.

The defendant was treated for superficial injuries and booked into jail. Neither the woman who was allegedly attacked, nor any law enforcement officers, were hurt.

According to court records, Harry was charged in April with attempted murder of a public safety official, arson, attempted arson and vandalism. It was unclear who was victimized, or what the circumstances were behind the alleged offenses, but sheriff's officials indicated that Thursday's incident was similar to a previous one.

"Bail for Harry was denied since he had committed virtually the same criminal act in April 2017, and had attempted to burn down the same residence at that time," Harris said.

In the April case, the defendant posted a $1 million bond and was released from custody, records showed.

— Image via Riverside County Sheriff's Department / City News Service contributed to this report