Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-04-13

AT Boiling
A 28-year-old man arrested
In Key West. Fla, has confessed
setting more than so fires in
widely-scattered places-one of
them at Boiling Air Force Base
in Washington.
Police of Monroe County,
Fla. estimate the total loss in
the fires at more than 81 mil
lion.
The man, Billy Watkins
Moody, is now serving a SEN
tence for petty theft. After his
arrest he told of setting the |
fires over the last 20 years. He
was able to supply dates. names
and amounts Of loss in some
cases. but in others they are
lacking.
He will be arraigned in Grim
lnal Court at Key West next
month on charges of setting
fire to four buildings in Key
West: the First Baptist Church.
a laundry, a warehouse and a
night club.
First Fire at 8
1t. Rene Raiole said Moody
claimed the first fire he set,
when only 8. destroyed half a
city block in Philadelphia, Miss.
He blamed an unhappy child
hood for his wave of arson.
But I believe I am on the
way to beating this thing" he
told reporters, land I want to
get cured and then go and
work among people who have
the same affection as that
have had. l believe / can do
them some good"
But he stayed to watch only
two of the fires, he told police.
Those two were a $3.50, 900
fire at the Roberts Hotel in
Miami in 1855 and the 100000
fire at the Key West church
in 1856.
Many of the fires were on
military reservations while
Moody was serving in the Army
and Navy in the United States
and abroad.
The date of the Boiling Air
Force fire was not clear. Moody I
told police he set it in a bar /
racks. officials at Boiling say |
there have been three barracks 1
fires in the last 10syears, none .
Of them very serious.
OF the three. the only one in
which investigators suspected |
arson was five years ago in a /
barracks at the south end of
the base. Damage was 81 500.
Blazes Listed
Other fires on the list which |
the Florida police have COM
piled with Moody's help include: 1
A hotel and eight other build 1
ings in Portsmouth. Va. with /
half million dollar loss: number /
of buildings in South Korea /
when Moody was in army there. 4
telephone building in Danville. /
KY: Charleston. S. c. YMCA. +
with $4,000 loss: service club
Of Grand View ALB. Michigan. /
Barracks at Litchfield Park
Naval Air Station in Phoenix, 4
Ariz.: theater at Naval Air Sta 4
ton at San Diego, Calf: two
service clubs and two barracks
at Fort Bragg. N. c., orderly
room at Camp Stoneman. Calf; 4
chapel and service club in Fort
Riley. KanS.
Mess hall and one barracks
at Fort Drum, N. Y. in which
one soldier burned to death:
day room at Walker ALB in
New Mexico; apartment house
and florist shop in Norfolk. Va:
service club in Iceland; service
club in Hawaii.
Service club and three bar
racks at Fort jackson. S. c.;
USO in Columbia. S. c.; naval
hospital storeroom in Ports
mouth. Va; barracks at Lack
land. Tex; YMCA in Albany,
N. Y; apartment at 283 Lexing-
ton avenue. New York City;
theater at Little Greek Naval
Base. Norfolk, Va, Baptist
Church at RusSelville. KY.
Christian Science Church and
q night club in Bowling Green.
KY: USO in Roswell. N. Mex;
YMCA in San Francisco: USO
in Oakland. Calf: USO in Long
Beach. Calf; Pittsburgh. Calf;
Mobile. Ala: Dallas. Ell Paso.
Tex. and empty building in
New Orleans.