Kathleen Brady Shea, Dwight Ott and Mari A. Schaefer
Philadelphia Inquirer

Mark Gilliam aspired to be a firefighter -- desperately, evidently.

Rejected by his local fire company, out of his own pocket he bought a helmet, boots, and heavy-duty flame-retardant pants. He equipped his car with nine strobe lights, according to court documents.

Today, the 19-year-old native of the West Chester area is a prisoner, accused of trying to set fire to a restaurant in the Coatesville area, which has been terrorized by a yearlong rash of arsons.

U.S. Attorney Laurie Magid said Mr. Gilliam's desire to be a firefighter may have figured in his motive.

Mr. Gilliam was ordered held without bail yesterday on one count of attempted arson. If convicted, he would have to serve at least five years in jail.

His federal arraignment came the day after Roger Leon Barlow Jr., 19, of Downingtown, was charged with setting nine of 24 fires in the area since Jan. 1.

According to the criminal complaint, Mr. Barlow "told federal investigators that he and Gilliam were responsible for numerous additional Coatesville fires." He later retracted that account, but acknowledged they had discussed the restaurant fire.

Mr. Gilliam is to appear Friday before U.S. District Judge Carol Wells. He was charged in federal court because he was accused of setting a fire at a restaurant "establishment that regularly affects interstate commerce," according to an affidavit by Jesse Lampf, a special agent of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Ms. Magid said the investigation continues.

Mr. Gilliam, wearing red mesh shorts that came to his knees and a black polo shirt, and with a tattoo visible on his scalp beneath his blond, close-cut hair, was charged with one count of attempted arson in a Jan. 25 fire at the Happy Days Family Bistro in Thorndale. His attorney Richard Meanix, who said Mr. Gilliam was innocent, said the blaze caused only minor damage. The fire went out by itself, according to investigators.

After a solemn-faced, gum-chewing Mr. Gilliam walked handcuffed into the courtroom and sat at a table in front of U.S. Magistrate Thomas Reuter, the hearing lasted just five minutes.

According to court documents, Mr. Gilliam applied to be a firefighter in West Bradford last month, but his application was rejected. The fire company said in a statement that he failed a background check.According to court records, Mr. Gilliam has had previous encounters with the law.

On Feb. 8, he led state police on a high-speed chase with his girlfriend, Kate Christensen, who was seven months pregnant, in the car.

The cruiser in pursuit was involved in a crash.

Mr. Gilliam told police he fled "because he was on parole and scared."

He was paroled from Chester County Prison May 2 after serving less than three months of a three- to 23-month sentence for the theft of two all-terrain vehicles on Aug. 11, 2007, with four accomplices.

Yesterday, Ms. Christensen and her parents attested to Mr. Gilliam's character. Sitting in the living room of her parents' home in Downingtown, Kate Christensen said she was stunned when a friend called to tell her of Mr. Gilliam's possible involvement in the fires. As she put down the phone, her lower lip quivered and she broke into tears.

"I just want to talk to him and hear it from his mouth," she said. "He always said to me he never would do anything like that ... I just don't believe this."

The arrest was the result of a joint task force set up to investigate the Coatesville-area fires.

February 21, 2009
Copyright 2009 P.G. Publishing Co.