Harford County Man Charged In Attempted Apartment Building Arson

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — Authorities said a man was charged in connection with a failed arson attempt at an apartment building near Perryman. He lives less than a mile from the complex.

David Allen Weglein Jr., 27, of the 1400 block of Cranberry Road, has been charged with attempted first-degree arson, attempted second-degree malicious burning and reckless endangerment.

The charges stem from what deputy state fire marshals allege was an attempt to set a fire inside the Perrywood Garden Apartments, a building near Aberdeen with people inside at the time.

Surveillance footage showed a man walking into the building in the 200 block of Mayberry Drive around 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 4, putting a blanket on the floor, dousing it with a substance believed to be gasoline and trying unsuccessfully to set the blanket on fire, officials said.

Afterward, investigators said he picked up the blanket, left the apartment building and discarded the items outside.

Aberdeen firefighters found a blanket and empty gas can outside the building at 10:30 p.m. when crews were called to the Perrywood Garden Apartments for a reported fuel leak. They also located a large puddle of suspected gasoline on the second story of the apartment building, officials said.

The fire marshal had asked the public to help identify the suspect, releasing his photo on April 5.

Court records show that a warrant for Weglein's arrest was issued on Friday, April 5. The Harford County Sheriff's Office detained him while troopers from the Bel Air barrack served the warrant on Sunday, April 7, according to the fire marshal.

A judge ruled at a bail review hearing on Monday, April 8, that Weglein will be held without bail. He is slated to appear in Harford County District Court on Wednesday, May 8.

RELATED: Fire Marshal Wants ID Of Failed Arson Suspect In Harford County

Photos courtesy of the Office of the State Fire Marshal.