A Michigan man drove more than 11 hours and 700 miles to set fire to the home of his ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend in the Philadelphia suburbs, police said Monday.
Harrison Jones, 21, was charged with six counts of attempted homicide and four counts of arson, the Bensalem Police Department said. The six people living in the home escaped with their lives, but two dogs were killed and the house was destroyed.
Jones, a resident of Rockford, Mich., was detained on Feb. 13. He is awaiting extradition to Pennsylvania.
Jones’ ex-girlfriend, also a Michigan resident, was in an online relationship with a young man in Bensalem, about 15 miles north of downtown Philadelphia in Bucks County, cops said. She was planning to visit him in person for the first time during the week of Valentine’s Day.
But on Feb. 10, a massive fire erupted at the Bensalem man’s home. The blaze started around 5 a.m. and quickly gained strength, authorities said. At least one resident had to escape by jumping out of a second-story window.
Surveillance cameras captured a 2021 Volkswagen sedan leaving the scene moments before the fire erupted, cops said. Video also showed a man getting out of the car and walking toward the house.
Investigators eventually tracked the vehicle to a Brian Jones in Rockford, Mich., who lived at the same address as Harrison Jones. After setting the blaze, Jones turned around and headed back to Michigan, police said.
Cops said Harrison Jones knew about the address and the relationship because he was supposed to drive his ex-girlfriend to Pennsylvania to visit her new boyfriend, the Bucks County Courier Times reported. The woman is not considered a suspect in the case.
“He had nearly 740 miles to think about what he did,” Bensalem public safety director William McVey said Monday.
