By Brett Crossley ,
3 hours ago
Williamsport, Pa. — A two-day trial concluded with a former South Williamsport firefighter being found guilty of setting fire to an abandoned home.
Today, a jury of five men and seven women convicted Peter Allen Zielewicz, 44, of Muncy of multiple felonies and a misdemeanor. In 2020, Zielewicz used a road flare to set his deceased mother's home on fire.
Zielewicz cared for the property in the 500 block of Hastings Street for more than six months before the fire in October of 2020. The home had 17 cats and two dogs living inside, creating odors, messes, and damage that needed repaired. Zielewicz, his wife, and two brothers cleaned the home and cleared out the animals before the blaze.
On the day of the fire, Zielewicz was at the home with his daughter for nearly two hours. Surveillance video showed the two next door at the Sunoco minutes before the fire began. Zielewicz drove home, but returned when he and his wife heard the scanner call for a fire at the home.
Zielewicz was convicted of arson with intent to destroy a building, reckless burning, possession of explosive material, and criminal mischief. He was found not guilty of arson with danger of de...