A man in Texas has been arrested after security footage allegedly showed him setting fire to two of his neighbors’ houses while wielding a machete.
Phi Le Nguyen, 46, is accused of dousing the side of one neighbor’s house with gasoline and lighting it on fire before moving on to set alight a second neighbor’s home.
Security footage taken from a property in the affluent neighborhood appears to show him strolling down the road with a can of gasoline in hand.
He was allegedly seen smoking a cigarette while dousing the side of Andy Heredia’s home with gasoline, before lighting the fire.
Heredia said he stopped him after he allegedly left a scorched lawn and a small portion of scorched bricks.
The concerned resident told ABC 13 that if he didn’t step in, the damages could have been a lot worse.
Nguyen is allegedly seen wandering a few doors down, still holding onto the machete. He’s accused of pouring the gasoline onto another neighbor’s house, emptying it onto their driveway and lighting another fire.
Prosecutors say footage shows him standing at the end of the driveway looking back toward the house, casually smoking his cigarette and taking a swing of his machete.
Nguyen was arrested and faces two arson charges as well as two aggravated assault charges.
Court documents accused him of threatening the second homeowner and a responding officer with the machete.
Nguyen is being held on a $150,000 bond.
