Man Charged With Torching Golf Carts At Melreese Country Club
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A man suspected of setting golf carts on fire at Miami's Melreese Country Club has been arrested.
Carlos Crespo, 20, has been charged with arson and burglary.
The fire Tuesday night burned, severely damaged, or destroyed 44 golf carts.
An anonymous tip led detectives to Crespo who lives near the golf course.
Crespo is also suspected in a second arson case in which a pickup truck was torched the Grapeland Water Park last month. The water park is just three blocks south of the golf course.
The manager of the golf course said surveillance video of the golf car parking area shows man shoving towels under the carts. When the fire doesn't burn fast enough, he does it again and that's when the flames really flared up. He added that the gas-powered carts are brand new, they only arrived about three weeks ago.
This is the same golf course where David Beckham and developer Jorge Mas are planning, should it be approved, a mega soccer complex with a 28-thousand seat stadium, hotels, tech space and more. There's been a highly contentious battle over building the complex on the grounds occupied by the golf course.
Recently, in a split 3-2 vote, the City Commission approved the change of use to be on the ballot this November for voter approval.
That decision is facing a legal challenge. On Tuesday, an emergency hearing was scheduled after a local lawyer filed suit saying the city had violated the charter by not opening up the property for competitive bidding. That hearing was reset for next week.
It has not been determined if the fire is related to the soccer complex deal.
