Angry patrons set Lake County bar on fire after being kicked out: officials
Left to right: Estivent Mena-Ferrera, Fernando A. Mejia and Fulgencio Benites-Gaspar | Lake County Sheriff's Office
BEACH PARK, Ill. - Three men have been charged with arson after Lake County investigators said they intentionally set a fire that destroyed a Beach Park bar earlier this month in retaliation for being removed from the business weeks.
Beach Park bar arson
What we know:
The fire broke out around 5:55 a.m. on July 17 at Social Pub, 37895 N. Sheridan Road, causing catastrophic damage to the building, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.
Deputies responded to the scene along with the Beach Park Fire Department. Investigators from the fire department, the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal and the sheriff's office determined the blaze was suspicious and had been intentionally set.
Detectives launched an extensive investigation that included reviewing surveillance video from multiple locations, collecting evidence and conducting numerous interviews.
Investigators eventually identified a suspicious vehicle that was seen in the area around the time the fire started.
On Thursday, detectives located the vehicle in the 900 block of Broadway Avenue in North Chicago and interviewed two people they believed were involved in setting the fire.
Fernando A. Mejia, 18, Fulgencio Benites-Gaspar, and Estivent J. Mena-Ferrera, 21, of Waukegan were each charged with one felony count of arson, according to the sheriff's office.
According to investigators, Mejia and Benites-Gaspar were angry after staff removed them from the bar several weeks before the fire and developed a plan to burn the business down. Authorities said Mena-Ferrera also participated in carrying out the plan.
What's next:
All three remained in the Lake County Jail ahead of an initial court appearance Friday morning.
The Source: The information came from the Lake County Sheriff's Office.