NW Side man charged with murder, arson in Austin fire that killed 4

Yahoo

2 days ago

A Humboldt Park man has been charged with murder in connection to the fatal fire that killed four people — including a 5-year-old boy — in the Austin neighborhood late last month.
Lontray Clark, 23, faces multiple felony charges tied to the fatal blaze, including four counts of first-degree murder, four counts of aggravated arson, two counts of attempted murder, and one count of residential arson, Chicago police announced Friday evening.
Clark was arrested on Wednesday in Springfield following an investigation by Chicago police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, authorities said. Authorities identified Clark as the offender who allegedly 'intentionally set fire to a residence in the 5200 block of (West) North Avenue' last month, police said.
Alongside the 5-year-old, a 27-year-old woman, a 32-year-old woman and a 76-year-old man also died in the blaze, which broke out in the early morning hours of June 26, according to authorities.
The 76-year-old was identified as Brad Cummings, longtime editor of the West Side's Voice Newspapers.
Several published reports identified the victims as Gina Brown Henry, 32, her son, Jayceon, and her sister, Destiny Henry, 27.
The fire left three others critically injured, including a 4-year-old boy.
Colleagues and elected officials remembered Cummings as a hallmark of the Austin neighborhood.
Len Tomasello, a columnist for the Voice Newspapers for the past three-and-a-half years, said Cummings was the 'best of the West Side.'
'He was a curmudgeon in a good way,' Tomasello said. 'To him, there was only one thing — getting the paper out each week. That's what he lived and breathed for.'
Longtime West Side Ald. Emma Mitts, 37th, said that 'everyone knew' Cummings.
Mitts recalled that when she'd go to community events, 'I'd look around and the next thing I know, I'd see Brad.'
To U.S. Rep. Danny Davis, whose district includes Austin, 'There was no person who lived in the Austin community that was more important to the area than Brad Cummings,' he said.
Clark is due to appear in court for a detention hearing on Saturday.
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