Hartford Man Charged With Setting Fire In His Bloomfield Nursing Home Room

June 23--BLOOMFIELD -- A 73-year-old Hartford man who police say set fire to his nursing home room because he wanted to leave the facility is being held at the Hartford Correctional Center on $250,000 bail.

Police said Rodrick Peters, of 153 Sheldon St., used two rolls of toilet paper to start a fire in a wooden cabinet in his room at the Touchpoints at Bloomfield health care facility about 8:30 a.m. Saturday. He was charged Tuesday with two counts of first-degree arson and third-degree assault.

After setting the fire, according to the warrant for his arrest, Peters hit a nurse in the face with his cane. The nurse saw the fire and was trying to get into the room to put it out, according to the warrant. Peters tried to prevent anyone else from entering, but a kitchen worker named Murphy Breary forced his way in and used water, ice and a fire extinguisher to put it out.

Despite Breary's efforts, smoke billowed out of Peters' room, the warrant said, and although staff, police and firefighters evacuated the wing of its 25 other residents, five were taken to St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center to be checked for smoke inhalation.

During the evacuation, Peters walked away from the nursing home and into nearby woods, where Bloomfield police found him a short time later.

As he was being loaded into an ambulance to be checked at the hospital, Peters told police that he did not like staying at the facility and said he was to be discharged on Saturday. He told police he became upset when he learned his discharge paperwork was not complete.

"Peters said he believed the staff wanted him to continue to stay so as to make money from his insurance," according to the arrest warrant. "Peters said he started the fire using his lighter." When police frisked Peters, they found a Bic lighter that they seized as evidence.

Peters was a patient at the facility because he'd fallen, injured his leg and required rehabilitation, according to the warrant.

Fire damage was confined to Peters' room.

Touchpoints at Bloomfield, at 140 Park Ave., used to be known as Wintonbury Care Center.

Peters is due in court July 6 in Hartford.

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