Man pleads guilty to setting house on fire, insurance fraud
LANCASTER — A Lancaster man who admitted setting his home on fire and filing false insurance claims for undamaged property faces six years in prison and a $15,000 fine.
Roger W. Sattler, 50, pleaded guilty Thursday to one count of insurance fraud, a fifth-degree felony, and one count of attempted aggravated arson, a third-degree felony, in Fairfield County Common Pleas Court.
A charge of aggravated arson was lessened to attempted aggravated arson in a plea agreement.
The Sept. 15 fire forced Sattler, his fiancée and five children to seek shelter at a hotel, arranged with the help of the Fairfield County Chapter of the American Red Cross.
Assistant Fire Chief John Kraner drove by the house at 666 E. Main St. and noticed smoke coming from the structure just before 9 a.m. that day and called for help.
Main Street was shut down for about an hour while firefighters put out the flames.
At the scene, Sattler’s fiancee Audra Boyer, said the family moved into the house in May.
The couple rented the home, which neighbors Heimberger Office Machines, and did have renter’s insurance.
Officials think Sattler started the fire while his family was out of the house and filed false insurance claims on items that were not damaged.
Officials uncovered several of those items, including electronic gear such as TVs, in different locations around the area.
Sattler was later arrested for insurance fraud, and an investigation through the Lancaster Fire Department led to a grand jury indictment on one count aggravated arson.
A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled.