Philadelphia firebombing suspect arrested with help of surveillance video

A suspect who is accused of firebombing a home in Philadelphia was reportedly arrested this week in part thanks to the residents who were inside the home during the attack. 

The owner of the rowhome near Temple University shared home surveillance video with investigators that showed a man, identified by prosecutors as Kyle Halls, throwing a flaming bottle through a window in the early morning hours of Nov. 15, FOX 29 Philadelphia reported, citing court documents. 

Additional surveillance video from days before the attack allegedly shows the suspect trash a cardboard box near a home that was later found to have mail with his name on it. Investigators reportedly traced Halls to a home a few blocks from the victims’ house. 

A Temple University Police detective also told investigators the suspect in the video was wearing clothes similar to a suspect accused of smashing another window nearby. Investigators also found both suspects had a “similar gait” and an “occasional limp.”

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The three students who rent rooms in the home on Cleveland Street and the homeowner, a recent graduate of the school, all escaped without any injuries. 

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The homeowner ran downstairs after hearing glass breaking and found the curtains on fire, FOX 29 reported. It was put out by fire crews after the residents ran out of the home. 

Hall was first arrested by a Temple University Police Department detective then turned over to the Philadelphia Police Department.

Neighbor Annie Elliott told FOX 29 finding out the fire was intentional was unsettling. 

“We’ve all kind of been on edge recently,” Elliot said. “So that was just another little nail in the coffin there.”

The arrest comes a day after a Philadelphia Parking Authority officer was shot and killed.