Man accused of twice setting homeless camp on fire

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A man accused of setting homeless campsites on fire near the Convention Center will face a judge Wednesday morning.

Carl Mahone, 54, is being charged with aggravated arson after he allegedly set two separate homeless encampments on fire under the South 3^rd Street bridge, near the 200 block of Convention Center Drive.

On March 21, Columbus police responded to reports of a fire that involved a homeless encampment at 1:18 p.m., according to a Franklin County Municipal Court document. A witness gave the responding officer a description of a suspect, who reportedly left the scene.

After the scene was cleared, a second fire was reported, which involved multiple fires at the same location, on the south side of the bridge’s support structure. After clearing the scene, Mahone was spotted on the 600 block of North High Street.

Mahone was taken into custody and during an interview with a Fire and Explosive Investigative Unit, he admitted to setting the fires and provided details of the events. He is scheduled for a 9 a.m. arraignment.

No injuries were reported in the court document.