LI Man Accused Of Firebombing Ex-Girlfriend's Home Faces Attempted Murder Charges
BALDWIN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A man who police said set a car on fire and threw a Molotov cocktail through a window of his ex-girlfriend's Baldwin home is set to face a judge on Wednesday.
Joseph Ferrufino, 21, now faces four counts of attempted murder charges -- upgraded charges from the original first and third-degree arson charges he originally faced, CBS2's Carolyn Gusoff reported.
He was arrested Tuesday after police said he went to his ex-girlfriend's home on Harrison Avenue, covered a Mercedes Benz in the driveway with gasoline and set it ablaze. He then threw a firebomb through a second floor window, police said.
According to documents, Ferrufino told police that he 'wanted them [the family] to burn.'
His ex-girlfriend's father chased him down the street, but was unable to catch him. Police later found Ferrufino at Grand Avenue and Stanton Avenue and arrested him after a brief foot chase, authorities said.
Two people inside the house were wounded in the incident. A 41-year-old woman suffered from smoke inhalation and first degree burns to her legs and a 13-year-old girl had a laceration to her foot.
Two officers also received minor injuries during the apprehension.
Investigators say this wasn't Ferrufino's first attempt. He's accused of trying to do the same thing a week ago, but police said the window didn't break and the firebomb didn't ignite.
The couple broke up two years ago.
Zulma Ferrufino, the defendant's mother, said he had been depressed, but thought it was just a typical young romance.
"Its about boyfriend and girlfriend, she was calling him," Ferrufino said. "He was talking to her before, like two days ago, three days ago."
Prosecutors say video evidence -- broken glass and admissions implicate Ferrufino. His mother was alone in expressing remorse.
"I feel sorry for the family and I didn't know this was going to happen," she said. "My son never said nothing. Im sorry."
Ferrufino is being held without bail but if and when bail is set, the court ordered him to stay away from this family.
