Arlington Man Charged With Arson, Attempted Murder

Arlington, MA - An Arlington man was arraigned today for allegedly starting a fire in close proximity to two homeless men who were saved from death or serious injury by a good samaritan who smelled smoke, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said in a release.

Matthew Cody, 30, was indicted last week on charges of arson and attempted murder. He was arrested today by Boston Police at the Boston Municipal Court, where he was attending a court date on an unrelated case, and transported to Suffolk Superior Court, where the case will be adjudicated, a release said.

Assistant District Attorney David McGowan, the DA’s point prosecutor for arson offenses, recommended that Cody be held on a $75,000 cash bail. Clerk Magistrate Lisa Medeiros imposed $30,000, the release said.

McGowan told the court that Cody left his job at a restaurant downtown at about 11 p.m. on the night of Oct. 8, 2015, and walked past two homeless men sleeping in the alcove of 41 West St. He allegedly stopped a short distance away, retrieved a book from a recycling bin on the sidewalk, and walked back to the alcove.

Prosecutors say Cody placed the book on the ground close to the two sleeping men, set it on fire, and walked a short distance away. When the fire went out on its own, he allegedly returned and set it on fire again, prosecutors said. This time, the fire took hold and spread to the cardboard used as a cushion by the two sleeping men, and then the alcove in which they were situated, prosecutors said.

An employee at a nearby youth services agency smelled smoke and went outside to investigate. He saw the fire, roused the two sleeping men, and tried to extinguish the spreading blaze with a trash barrel he filled with water, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said the Boston Fire Department estimated the cost of the fire damage at $18,000. In the hours and days that followed, Boston Police detectives and firefighters of the Fire Investigation Unit retrieved surveillance footage from cameras in the area, prosecutors said.

A careful examination of this footage suggested that the arsonist had come from the area of the restaurant at which Cody worked, prosecutors said. Investigators obtained a list of employees on duty that night and, from that list, identified Cody as a potential suspect, prosecutors said. Investigators later approached Cody on West Street and observed him to be wearing clothing and a backpack similar to those visible in the surveillance images of the arsonist, prosecutors said.

In recounting his actions on the night of Oct. 8, Cody allegedly stated that he walked from West Street to Tremont Street but did not stop or talk to anyone along the way. Prosecutors told the court that the Fire Investigation Unit spoke with Cody’s co-workers and showed them surveillance images depicting the arsonist. Three of them identified the man as Cody, he said. In an interview with Boston Police and Boston Fire investigators, however, Cody allegedly could not identify himself in those images and said he could not remember details about the night of the fire.

Cody was represented today by attorney Andrew Stockwell-Alpert. He will return to court on Aug. 16.