Facebook page tracks arson cases, encourages people not to fear

by Brian Farrell, 13News

WVEC.com

Posted on March 4, 2013 at 11:21 PM

Updated yesterday at 7:23 AM

ACCOMACK COUNTY -- Virginia State Police said four fires last weekend were cases of arson.?

There were two more fires Monday night, which appear to have been intentionally set as well.?That would put the number of intentionally set fires in Accomack County since November 2012 to 60.

"I refuse to be afraid.?I personally will refuse out-and-out to be afraid because of the sensationalism of someone who's basically, you know, a terrorist," said Jillian Rajevich, an administrator of the Facebook page entitled WHO IS TRYING TO BURN DOWN ACCOMACK COUNTY!!!.

Rajevich said someone else started the page shortly after the series of arson cases began.

"If a siren goes off, if somebody sees something suspicious, anything, I mean, pretty much we all know about it almost immediately," explained Rajevich.

The page, with more than 3,000 members, provides an outlet for people to share their thoughts about the crimes that, to date, have targeted abandoned or empty structures. Rajevich said many people are angry about the arsons.

"To have somebody that comes in and kind of just wants to cause, you know, havoc and chaos with that, I mean, nobody appreciates it," noted Rajevich.

While the main purposes of the page are to share information and to encourage people to watch out for anything odd taking place near their homes, Rajevich pointed out the Facebook forum may have the attention of the people responsible for setting the fires, making it one more tool investigators might be able to use to catch the fire-starters.

"People will finally be able to rest in peace, you know, they'll be able to lay their heads down at night and not worry about the next fire," Rajevich said.

Monday night's fires burned an abandoned home on Savageville Road in Onancock and a vacant two-story building on Whites Crossing Road in Mears. That fire was spotted by the Virginia State Police aircraft around 11:10 p.m.

Anyone with information can use the tip line to call, text or email the investigators. The number is 757-655-1437. A reward of up to $25,000 is available for information that leads to the arrest/conviction of those involved.

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Source: http://www.wvec.com/news/Facebook-page-tracks-arsons-195192811.html

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