Burn victim now charged with arson for Saint Joseph Street fire

A Gonzales man injured in a house fire on Saint Joseph Street last month has now been arrested and accused of starting that blaze.

Roger Rivera, 59, is currently in the Bexar County Jail on a charge of arson of a habitation, a first-degree felony, awaiting eventual transport to Gonzales County Jail. He was arrested at 11:13 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 4, in San Antonio, according to Lt. Jason Montoya of the Gonzales Police Department.

Gonzales Fire Department units had to be dispatched to a residence in the 1200 block of Saint Joseph Street for a residential structure fire at about 4:26 p.m. Monday, Sept. 19. When they arrived, they reported heavy fire coming from the rear of a single-story residence.

Originally it was reported that the residence was unoccupied upon initial inspection and that fire crews had the main fire contained within 15 minutes of arrival and that all units had cleared the scene and returned to service by 6:30 p.m. that evening.

It was also initially reported that no firefighter or civilian injuries had taken place; however, it was later reported to the Inquirer by a family member that Rivera was recovering at Brook Army Medical Center (BAMC) in San Antonio at the hospital burn unit.

Rivera reportedly suffered second-degree burns to his face, lips, left hand and knees and had to have a graft on left hand due to the severity of the injury, according to the family member, who did not wish to be identified.

Fire Marshal Scott Raven enlisted the assistance of the Gonzales Police Department and the State Fire Marshal’s Office in his investigation into the cause of the fire and eventually determined that it was suspicious in origin and appeared to have been set intentionally by Rivera.

Arson is normally a second-degree felony, but if it is proven that either bodily injury or death was suffered by any person or that the property intended to be damaged or destroyed was a habitation or a place of assembly or worship, that will enhance the charge into a first-degree felony, which is punishable by 5-99 years or life in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.

Rivera’s reported burn injuries caused by the fire would satisfy the first scenario, while investigators also may have cause to believe the house was inhabited at the time of the fire.

Bond has not been set at this time for Rivera.