Accused Arsonist Taunted Ind. Police Online

EAST CHICAGO, IL — A teenager was arrested Wednesday in connection to two recent arson attempts on the same street where his ex-girlfriend lives.

18-year-old Michael Medrano, of East Chicago, faces 18 charges — mostly felonies — for allegedly setting fire to a car, and four days later, a house.

East Chicago Police said they responded to a reported car fire Oct. 24 on the 4300 block of Northcote Avenue. While there, witnesses told police they'd seen Medrano intentionally set fire to the car before running away. Officers patrolled the area surrounding the site of the alleged arson but found no one resembling the witness' description of him.

The case was assigned to East Chicago's Criminal Investigation Division.

Four days later, officers responded to the same location for a house fire, where people told police they had watched Medrano pour lighter fluid on a house before setting it on fire and leaving the scene before police arrived. Officers were again unsuccessful in their attempt to find him in the area.

East Chicago Police did not specify if the house Medrano set fire to was the house his ex-girlfriend lived in. However, during the investigations into both alleged arson attempts East Chicago detectives learned Medrano had been stalking, harassing and intimidating his ex-girlfriend.

Detectives initially filed 17 charges against Medrano, listed below:

3 counts of Level 4 felony arson
2 counts of Level 5 felony intimidation
1 count of Level 5 felony domestic battery resulting in serious bodily injury
1 count of Level 6 felony intimidation
2 counts of Level 6 felony arson
1 count of Level 6 felony criminal confinement
1 count of Level 6 felony strangulation
1 count of Level 6 felony stalking
1 count of Class A misdemeanor domestic battery
4 counts of Class A misdemeanor criminal mischief

After the charges were filed, Medrano "went into hiding" and started taunting the East Chicago detectives on social media, police said.

Two detectives in the department's Gang and Narcotics Division on Wednesday saw Medrano riding a bike in southern East Chicago. He tried to get away when they approached him. After a short pursuit and struggle, Medrano was handcuffed and taken into custody at the Lake County Jail.

An additional count of Class A misdemeanor resisting law enforcement was filed after the pursuit.

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