Alleged Teen Arsonist Racks Up Charges

CONCORD, NH - A teen from the southern part of the state that has been causing all kinds of alleged criminal activity in Concord during the past couple of years is facing a mountain of charges on top of the recent arson charges from the middle of March, according to court affidavits.

Steven M. Rowell, 18, of Route 4 in Danbury, is facing the following charges: Felony burglary, two counts of false public alarm, attempted false public alarm, criminal trespass, resisting arrest or detention, unlawful possession of alcohol, driving upon a sidewalk, and three counts default or breach of bail conditions.

Editor’s note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Concord Police Department and Concord District Court. It does not indicate a conviction. Click this link which explains New Hampshire Patch's police log name removal policy.

The latest problems for Rowell started back before he was arrested on March 13, 2016, on two counts of felony arson and other charges for allegedly setting a New Hampshire Department of Transportation shed and the lawn outside of the Holiday Inn on fire on March 12.

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According to court affidavits, at around 10:45 a.m. on March 9, 2016, an officer was sent to The Friendly Kitchen on South Commercial Street for a past tense burglary.

The director reported that a custodian had left messages about an incident the night before involving an alleged burglary and fire alarms being pulled at the building. The custodian stated that two individuals entered the building through the volunteer entrance and then one pulled the alarm in the front lobby. The officer confirmed with Concord Fire that the alarms were activated and then eyed security video at around 8:40 p.m. on March 8. The officer reported seeing the two suspects “hanging out on the front porch” and requested a detective and a veteran officer to come and look at the footage.

They immediately recognized both of individuals, according to the affidavit.

The video purported to show Rowell pulling the alarm outside, according to the affidavit, but the alarm didn’t activate. Rowell then walked around the building and allegedly entered from a separate entrance and alerted the other male. Rowell allegedly pulled that alarm and both men fled the area. Concord Fire arrived and then reset the alarm, according to the report.

At a little past 9 p.m., the video allegedly showed Rowell going back into the building and pulling the alarm again, according to the report.

Main Street bike incident

Later that afternoon, at around 4 p.m., a parking employee asked a man riding his bike on the sidewalk to stop and was reportedly given the middle finger by the bicyclist. The parking employee took a picture of the man and the man reportedly got upset and rode away. The parking employee gave police a description noting that the man had a teardrop tattoo on his face, according to the court affidavit.

An officer was sent to Main Street and saw the subject matching the description of the man at the Statehouse and the man reportedly quickly turned around and rode south. The officer caught up with him at Pleasant and North Main streets and ordered him to stop.

“He looked at me in the eyes and reversed directions and headed north,” the officer alleged.

The man – later identified as Rowell – reportedly dropped his bicycle and took off running after the officer parked his cruiser and got out to confront him. Other officers were called to the scene and Rowell was detained in an alley off Dubois Street.

“He thought it was funny that we were chasing him,” the reporting officer alleged.

A detective video interviewed Rowell at around 5:15 p.m. that afternoon and he allegedly stated he was “messed up on dope,” confessed to the burglary and alarms, and apologized. He was arrested and held without bail.

Arson arrest issued quickly

The arrest of Rowell on the arson charges might not have happened as quickly as it did had he not been arrested for unlawful possession of alcohol and default or breach of bail conditions less than an hour after the fire, according to court documents.

While Concord Fire was battling the brush and shed fires, Concord Police were stationed at different locations around the fire scene, including Loudon Road and Stickney Avenue, while other officers canvassed the area for possible witnesses.

At Cumberland Farms on North Main Street, two officers approached Rowell and another man to speak with them. Rowell allegedly smelled like alcohol and, at first, reportedly denied drinking anything but allegedly admitted to smoking “a little weed.” He later admitted to drinking and allegedly blew a 0.29 on a portable Breathalyzer test, according to a court affidavit, and was immediately arrested. A breach of bail charge was added and he refused bail and was held.

The officers let fire officials know that Rowell might be a suspect since he was reportedly in possession of a can of cologne and a lighter with him at the time of his arrest.

Fire investigators questioned Rowell and he allegedly admitted to setting the fires after being driven up from Danbury to Walmart where the other individual, who reportedly stole a bottle of Twilight Woods cologne from the store. They walked back to Main Street, consumed a couple of beers behind the building, and then Rowell allegedly sprayed the cologne on some bushes and lit them on fire, according to the court affidavit.

“Steven said the fire got out of control and he tried to stomp on the fire to put it out but was unable to,” according to the report.

The pair traveled west again on Loudon Road and Rowell allegedly sprayed another section of brush and a tree with cologne, and set that on fire, according to investigators. He later disposed of the lighter and went to Rollins Street to pick up a cellphone from a friend, he reportedly stated. He bought another lighter at Cumbies just before being questioned by police, according to the affidavit.

“I asked Steven if he ever called 911 to alert the fire department about the fires that he had set and he said he did not,” according to an affidavit. “I asked Steven why he lit the fires and he said it was for experimentation. Steven said he has used cologne before to light fires but the colognes he had used in the past did not ignite like it did tonight.”

The state fire marshal’s officer filed an affidavit with the court and Rowell was arrested and charged with arson.

Other arrests

During the last two years, Rowell has been arrested numerous times in Concord, for criminal trespass, default to bail, bench warrants, and unlawful possession of alcohol and cigarettes.