Link sought between UT
suspect in killing, fires
Published in The Toledo Blade on February 3, 1992.
By Michael D. Sallah, Blade Staff Writer.
Investigators are looking into whether the University of Toledo police officer who is accused of the killing of Melissa Ann Herstrum also is connected to a bizarre arson spree on campus.
Nine fires that erupted inside several UT buildings last Labor Day weekend - two dangerously close to explosive chemicals - were set by someone who had keys to the buildings, according to arson investigators.
No one was injured in the fires, which caused thousands of dollars in damage.
UT police officers say they will be comparing the times in which Officer Jeffery Hodge was on duty during the 24-hour period in which the fires were set at Bowman-Oddy Laboratories, Carlson Library, and University Hall Aug. 31-Sept. 1.
In one fire, someone set a match to a wastepaper basket in Bowman-Oddy Laboratories and propped the burning basket nest to tanks of nitrogen and oxygen.
Two research students smelled the smoke and called firefighters, who doused the flames before the fire could spread.
"We have to look at it and see if (Officer Hodge) was involved," said Frank Pizzulo, UT director of public safety.
"I think we have to go back and look at everything that may have been unusual on campus. We're not ruling out any possibilities at this time. We have to look at everything."
The 22-year-old officer, who is suspended with pay and being held in jail, was arrested at his home Saturday and charged with the Jan. 26 shooting death of Miss Herstrum.
No plea was entered on the aggravated murder charge during his appearance today in Toledo Municipal Court. Judge Denise Dartt set a bond of $1 million.
Officer Hodge stood silently in light green coveralls while his attorney, Alan Konop, asked for a preliminary hearing in the case, Judge Dartt set that hearing for Feb. 11.
He also is a suspect in the predawn attack on a women's dormitory on campus a week earlier, when someone fired six shots into a room and missed a sleeping student by a few feet.
Sources say the same 9mm handgun was used in the attacks.
Toledo Deputy Fire Chief Robert Schwanzl, whose division was in charge of investigating the UT arsons last summer, said yesterday that the arson unit would be looking into whether Officer Hodge is linked to the fires.
"Right now, I can't say much more because it is still under investigation,' he said.
Befinning Aug. 31 about 8 pm while school was in summer recess, someone went from building to building on the main campus lighting fires and then disappearing before firefighters arrived to douse the flames. In most cases, the smoke set off fire alarms within minutes.
The first fire was set at University Hall, when someone placed a match to a film drop-off box on the first floor and flames spread to a bulletin board, causing more than $5,000 in damage to the ceiling.
Three hours later, another fire was lit in a pile of paper on the third floor.
Seven more fires were set over the next 24 hours, including four small fires in Carlson Library, which was closed for three weeks.
"Most of the fires were small ones that were just malicious, but (caused) no real damages," said Toledo fire investigator Darrell Bonnough.
All of the fires were set at night or during the predawn hours. Officer Hodge's work schedule was not available yesterday.
Except for the fires in University Hall, the culprit would have needed a key to get inside.
The second fire at Bowman-Oddy was set when someone opened the door to Bowman-Oddy's chemical storage area and placed a burning wastepaper basket inside the door.
The smoke activated an alarm, and firefighters, who already had returned from several campus fires, extinguished the flames within 10 minutes, reports stated.
Besides police officers, only two to three maintenance workers and a few graduate students doing research were on the campus during most of the fires, Mr. Pizzuol said.