A Waukegan man is being held on a $200,000 bond after prosecutors say he doused a car in gasoline and lit it on fire in the driveway of a home in Waukegan.
Ruperto A. Barahona-Urraco, 30, of Waukegan, was charged with one count of arson, a Class 1 felony.
Court records show the incident occurred on November 5 in the 800 block of South McAlister Avenue in Waukegan.
Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Francis DeRosa said officers and firefighters responded to the location for a call of an arson fire involving a vehicle.
The Waukegan Fire Department extinguished the fire and officers observed a gray Mitsubishi with fire damage in the driveway.
The victim told officers they saw a white SUV stop in the street and the driver ran up to their vehicle.
The suspect, identified as Barahona-Urraco, poured gasoline on the vehicle and set a fire, DeRosa said.
Barahona-Urraco allegedly fled the scene in the SUV. The victim told officers that the offender was married to a woman who lives at the residence.
The victim gave officers a physical description of Barahona-Urraco, DeRosa said. A neighbor also witnessed the crime occur.
Detectives learned that Barahona-Urraco’s white Jeep SUV was similar to the description of the vehicle that the suspect fled the scene in.
Barahona-Urraco is believed to have targeted the male victim after Barahona-Urraco accused the victim of engaging in a relationship with his partner, DeRosa said.
Surveillance video was also obtained from the arson showing Barahona-Urraco’s vehicle fleeing the scene.
Charges were filed against Barahona-Urraco in December and he was taken into custody on the warrant last week.
Lake County Judge Theodore Potkonjak ordered Barahona-Urraco held on a $200,000 bond.
Barahona-Urraco remains held in the Lake County Jail and would need to post $20,000 cash to be released.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 2.