Brookfield police charged two men with felony attempted arson after they reportedly tried to torch an SUV in retaliation for the theft of a bicycle two months ago.
Adam C. Satala, 21, of LaGrange Park, and John C. Habian, 20, of Countryside, allegedly poured gasoline over a 1999 Jeep Cherokee parked on Shields Avenue just west of Custer Avenue at about 2 a.m. on May 22, according to Brookfield police.
They then poured gasoline leading to the vehicle on the pavement and lit it, said police. While the gasoline on the ground ignited, the car itself never did, but the two men drove off before learning that the plan had failed.
Some time before 4:30 a.m. Satala and Habian were pulled over by LaGrange police on an unrelated matter and charged them with possession of cannabis. While talking with LaGrange police, the two reportedly told officers that they had tried to set the SUV on fire.
Satala, Habian and the owner of the SUV had crossed paths earlier that morning at a home of a mutual friend in LaGrange Park. Satala, who believed the SUV’s owner stole his bicycle in LaGrange about two months ago, was angry the man was there and abruptly left with Habian.
The two reportedly went to a gas station in Lyons and filled four plastic water bottles with gasoline. They then drove to Brookfield, where they poured the gasoline over the car, police said.
The owner of the car told police he looked out the window of his Custer Avenue home at about 2 a.m. and saw flames by his SUV. By the time he got outside, however, the fire was out and he went back to bed, telling police he was going to make a report later that morning.
Police reported finding an L-shaped burn mark on the pavement near the SUV, stopping about a foot away from the vehicle’s gas tank. Police also reported a strong smell of gasoline near the SUV.