A man described as being dressed as a pirate and having a sword was arrested April 22 after Martin County Sheriff’s officials accused him of setting fire to grass in the Savannas Preserve State Park, an affidavit states.
Morgan Grante Lentz, 22, of Melbourne, was jailed on charges including malicious land burning, criminal mischief $1,000 or more and resisting arrest without violence.
Martin County Fire Rescue crews went to a fire at 11:32 p.m. at Northeast Jensen Beach and Northeast Pinecrest Lakes boulevards in the park, according to Jillian Kay, fire rescue spokesperson.
The fire appeared to be a couple of hundred yards long, and no structures were in danger. Firefighters quickly extinguished it, Kay stated.
Earlier, a deputy was flagged down at a pub in the 1900 block of Northeast Jensen Beach Boulevard, east of the park, by a man who said a man later identified as Lentz was pouring gas on his motorcycle. The witness “described the suspect as a white male dressed as a pirate,” the affidavit shows
The motorcycle owner said he confronted the man and pursued him on foot.
Officials got reports of a man matching the alleged suspect’s description “carrying a stick and actively lighting grass on fire within Savannas Preserve State Park,” the report shows.
Officials reported finding Lentz in the park “with a torch in his hand and a sword attached to his waistline.”
Investigators found about 1.5 gallons of gas in water jugs in front of the pub.
According to the report, witnesses reported seeing Lentz start the fire.
One witness reported seeing Lentz walking with a torch on fire. He watched Lentz put the torch on the ground and setting vegetation ablaze. He described the person as having something on his back that appeared to be a samurai sword.
This story will be updated.
Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at will.greenlee@tcpalm.com.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Florida man dressed as pirate with sword arrested after fire at park
Reporting by Will Greenlee, Treasure Coast Newspapers / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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