Man charged with arson, insurance fraud

ENGLEWOOD — A man was arrested Wednesday after fire investigators concluded he set his own home on fire last year.

Travis Junior Baker, 57, is charged with one count each of arson and defrauding insurer by burning.

Baker allegedly moved his possessions to a vehicle and unplugged his home cameras before lighting nine different fires with gasoline vapors.

Charlotte County firefighters responded around 4:26 a.m. on Nov. 28, 2023 to a reported house fire in the 11500 block of Willmington Boulevard. The Englewood Fire Department was the first on the scene.

They found Baker outside the home, with hair on his arms and legs visibly singed from the flames.

The Bureau of Fire, Arson, and Explosives Investigations, under the Florida Chief Financial Officer's office, was brought in to determine the cause of the fire.

A report by investigators alleged Baker had complained of a head injury at the scene. A follow-up with the hospital where he was treated showed no physical bruising or signs of a head injury.

The report alleged a video recording system connected to the home on Willmington Boulevard had been unplugged prior to the fire, as soot was found in the open wall conduit.

Baker told investigators he had heard two men make threats to him on a neighboring property and suspected they had set the fire.

The report stated firefighters accessed the property through an unlocked door in the rear of the house — deemed inconsistent with Baker's usual security, according to a family member who previously lived at the home.

Firefighters found "numerous non-connecting fires in different areas of the home."

A red plastic can was alleged to have been found near one of the fire starting locations, per the report. An "odor of gas" was present in several rooms.

"The multiple fires were ignited by an application of an open flame to gasoline vapors," the report stated. "There were no accidental sources of possible ignition in the area or any of the fires."

The fire caused an estimated $75,000 in damages to the home. The report said Baker made an insurance claim for it.

Baker is being held without bond at Charlotte County Jail. His arraignment is scheduled for Sept. 23.