After Setting Fire To Bradenton Publix 3 Times, Arsonist Gets 5 Years In Prison: DOJ

BRADENTON, FLORIDA — A serial arsonist who set fire to a Bradenton Publix last year was sentenced to five years in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven Thursday, the Department of Justice said in a news release.

According to court documents, Robert Timon Lovett, 50, of Bradenton started a fire at the Publix store on three consecutive dates in 2020, Dec. 25-27.

On Dec. 26 and 27, he went into the store and purchased the lighter fluid he used to start the fires, which he set while the store was open for business, the DOJ said. The Dec. 26 fire caused significant heat damage to the back of the store.

Law enforcement officers caught Lovett on Dec. 28, 2020, when he returned to the same Publix and again purchased lighter fluid.

In a statement to law enforcement, he admitted to starting the three fires. Lovett pleaded guilty Sept. 29.