Former VT student sentenced for apartment arsons

WSLS News Staff
Published: July 14, 2008

A former Virginia Tech student is sentenced for a series of arsons at a Blacksburg apartment complex.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says Robert Lawson pleaded guilty back in April, to setting fires at Terrace View Apartments back in July, August, and September of 2007.

A federal judge sentenced Lawson to five years in prison, and three years of supervised release afterwards.

Lawson faced up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  His plea agreement requires Lawson to pay $73,801.87 in restitution.

Investigators say the timeline of the fires happened as follows:

• July 19, 2007: Around 9:55 p.m., Blacksburg firefighters responded to a 911 call from Lawson. The call said there was a fire in the basement common area used by tenants for storage and laundry in the 5500 building of Terrace View Apartments. The Fire Marshal ruled the fire suspicious.
• August 31, 2007: Around 3:07 a.m., Blacksburg firefighters responded to a call of a fire again in the 5500 building of Terrace View Apartments. The Fire Marshal ruled this fire was an arson, and that it was set in the water heater room of the building. Police and firefighters say they saw Lawson in the area while fighting the flames. Investigators say Lawson was seen holding a police scanner.
• September 20, 2007: Around 4:23 a.m., Blacksburg firefighters responded to a fire in building 5100 of Terrace View Apartments. The 5100 building is across the parking lot from building 5500. The Fire Marshal determined this fire was arson, and it was set in the storage unit area of the 5100 building. Police and firefighters say they again saw Lawson in the area, and that Lawson was one of the first four people to show up at the scene of the fire. Investigators say a hydrocarbon gas detector, which can detect trace amounts of accelerants after a fire, alerted them to the presence of hydrocarbon gas on Lawson.
• October 2007: Investigators charged Lawson with three counts of arson.

“Mr. Lawson’s actions repeatedly put the lives of every tenant in that apartment complex at risk,“ Acting United States Attorney Julia C. Dudley said in a news release.  “I am pleased that Mr. Lawson has taken responsibility for his actions, and I am satisfied that today’s sentence is appropriate, given the potentially deadly consequences of his criminal conduct,“ Dudley added.