MAIDEN, N.C. — Fire investigators are trying to determine if someone intentionally set fire to a Maiden home that was built in 1898.
Firefighters were called around 3 a.m. Monday to the home on West Main Street and saw flames shooting through the roof.
The flames reached 20-30 feet above the roof line into the trees.
Fire investigators were at the scene for hours determining the cause.
Investigators said the home had been previously broken into twice. In one of those break-ins, a fire was set in the kitchen, and in the second case, someone clogged a sink and flooded the house, police said.
The owner said the home, which was built in 1898, was for sale and had just gone under contract. Family members said they put new deadbolts on the doors, but someone may have forced open an upstairs door to get inside last night.
"Very upsetting. This is the third time and all,” said Mike Goode, the homeowner’s father. “Everyone is trying to figure out who it is, but nobody has found out nothing. Hopefully, they'll find out before they get someone else's house."
At one point, fire investigators brought in a ladder truck and photograph the damage from above.
Across the street, a neighbor is taking precautions, while also keeping an eye out for others in the neighborhood.
"I got an equalizer that, if necessary, I will use it and I keep it loaded,” John Moose said. “So they don't want to mess with me much."
Police are canvassing the neighborhood hoping to find more video of the fire or surveillance video in the area in hopes of identifying a suspect.
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