Man gets four years in prison for setting two homes on fire

SAN DIEGO (CNS) – A man who used a blow torch to set a fire between two homes in Normal Heights was sentenced Thursday to four years and four months in state prison.

Enrique Madrigal — who was on probation for setting a fire in a park — pleaded guilty last month to arson.

About 2 a.m. last Sept. 29, Madrigal was caught setting fire to brush and plants in a one- to two-foot area between houses in the 5100 block of North Mountain View Drive, according to Deputy District Attorney Ted Fiorito.

The prosecutor said the victims’ dogs started barking and alerted them to what was going on.

According to Fiorito, the 26-year-old defendant had a blow torch and some engine degreaser — used to accelerate the fire — when he was arrested nearby.