WARREN, MICHIGAN BUSINESS OWNER PLEADS GUILTY IN ARSON-FOR-PROFIT SCHEME. HE ADMITTED IN COURT THAT HE BURNED DOWN BEST TEXTILE SERVICES ON HOOVER ROAD NEAR STEPHENS ROAD ON MAY 4, 2011 IN ORDER TO COLLECT ON AN INSURANCE POLICY
The owner
of a commercial laundry company in Warren that was destroyed by a natural gas
explosion four years ago has pleaded guilty to intentionally setting a fire
that caused the explosion, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Alexandros
Yfantidis entered a guilty plea to one count of mail fraud and admitted in
court that he burned down Best Textile Services on Hoover Road near Stephens
Road on May 4, 2011 in order to collect on an insurance policy,
His plea
agreement with federal prosecutors calls for restitution to reimburse victims
whose homes and personal property were damaged by the explosion.
“Oh my
goodness, that’s good to hear” said Warren Fire Commissioner Wilburt “Skip”
McAdams. “In my 33 years in fire service, I’ve never seen a building that
burned so completely. It was unbelievable.”
Yfantidis,
74, of Clinton Township, was indicted in 2014 by a federal grand jury on six
charges including arson and bank fraud for the explosion that damaged 49 homes
and business structures, causing more than $1 million in property losses.
Court
records did not specify how Yfantidis torched the building other than to say he
caused the fire, but investigators determined someone deliberately opened a
2-inch gas line inside the building and left a candle burning in its path,
which caused the explosion.
The blast
was felt for miles around, damaging at least 21 nearby residences and 28
businesses, and slightly injuring three passers-by.
In addition
to arson, the grand jury charged Yfantidis with mail fraud, using explosives to
commit a felony, bank fraud, obstruction of justice and bankruptcy fraud. He
faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced June 5 before U.S. District
Judge Stephen J. Murphy III.
Court
records show he devised a scheme to collect insurance proceeds from Farmers
Insurance after the fire and lied to law enforcement officials to cover up his
involvement with the explosion.
Yfantidis
and his wife, Helen, are from Greece and came to the United States where they
started a business supplying Detroit-area businesses with napkins and
tablecloths, They later created Best Textile, a laundry service that
specialized in bed and table linens for restaurants, hospitals and nursing
homes.
In recent
years, the couple’s lives unraveled due to business and personal challenges.
According
to court documents, the couple filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for personal and
business debts. After the explosion, the court converted the case to a Chapter
7 bankruptcy, or liquidation because the business was inoperable. Helen
Yfantiids had been diagnosed with dementia or the early stages of Alzheimer’s
disease, court records show.
Once
investigators determined the fire was arson, Warren Mayor James Fouts said he
would seek payment for “emotional and financial damages” for the victims.
The fire
commissioner said he has compiled a packet of documents outlining the city’s
expenses for the incident, including manhours involved for the joint
investigation with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
(ATF) and work performed by the Department of Public Works to clean the streets
and site after the rubble was demolished.
Warren
plans to seek reimbursement for those expenses, but it’s not clear what financial
resources YFantidis has left.
Defense
attorney David Steingold on Tuesday declined to comment.
In a news
release, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade thanked the Warren Fire Department
for its role in the probe, noting the danger firefighters faced in extinguishing
the blaze.
For
information concerning restitution, potential victims may contact the U.S.
Attorney’s Office Victims Witness Coordinator at 313-226-9633 or Tiesha Johnson
of the ATF at 313-202-3400.
The moral of the story: do not do it, you will get caught. The modern fire investigators are much smarter than you think.