Glen Cove man deliberately set house fire, police say

A 47-year-old Glen Cove man is due in court Tuesday, charged with first-degree arson and two counts of first-degree attempted murder in connection with a Friday house fire that injured two residents, one critically, court records show.

Nassau County Police said Alex Kirton, of Raymond Street in Glen Cove, was arrested Friday, following an investigation by Nassau Homicide Unit and Arson Bomb Squad detectives, as well as Glen Cove Police.

He is charged with deliberately setting the fire at the home on Raymond Street that saw a 41-year-old man airlifted to Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow with second- and third-degree burns, police said.

A second resident, a 68-year-old man, was transported to a hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation and was later released, police added.

Both of those residents were rescued from the fire, Nassau County Assistant Chief Fire Marshal Michael F. Uttaro said — the first victim pulled from the home by Glen Cove firefighters, the second saved by responding Glen Cove police.

Uttaro said two Glen Cove firefighters suffered minor injuries, were evaluated at the scene, and refused further medical attention.

The fire was reported in a 911 call at about 9:10 a.m., officials said, and almost immediately went to a second alarm. In all, firefighters from 10 departments responded and brought the fire under control in about an hour under the direction of Glen Cove Chief Marvin Tate, Uttaro said.

"They made a great grab," Uttaro said of the firefighters rescuing the critically hurt resident, adding those firefighters battled heavy smoke conditions to do so.

It does not appear Kirton and the victims are related and officials have said the residence may have been used as some sort of group facility.

In a news release about the arrest of Kirton, police said: "The defendant deliberately set his home on fire while two of his house mates were still inside."

Court records show Kirton, who was represented by a Legal Aid attorney, was remanded following arraignment Saturday in First District Court in Mineola.

Additional information was not immediately available and police said the investigation is continuing.

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”