St. Paul man charged with arson for starting fire at Union Depot in September
Nov. 30—A St. Paul man was charged Tuesday with setting a fire outside the Union Depot in September that resulted in $2,500 in damages.
Leroy Lamond Wiley, 32, was charged in Ramsey County District Court with one count of second-degree arson.
According to the complaint, Metro Transit police responded to a fire on a platform located at Fourth and Wacouta streets shortly after 2 a.m. Sept. 17. The St. Paul Fire Department was attempting to put out a large fire that was creating dense smoke.
Surveillance video footage showed a man, later identified as Wiley, riding his bike onto the platform. The video shows him arranging items in an abandoned shopping cart, lighting them on fire and parking the cart next to artwork on the platform.
The fire engulfed the large wooden/metal structure and damaged the train shelter and glass windows. Police heard over the radio that a man was setting multiple fires in the area of Rice Street and Sherburne Avenue. They located Wiley and arrested him.
Wiley has nine prior felony convictions for drugs, theft, domestic assault and burglary. His next court appearance is Dec. 2.
