Police Say Man Hired Someone to Set Restaurant on Fire

Police arrested restaurant owner Ted Kyriakopoulos, 56 of Bristol,Tuesday. He is facing federal charges. Investigators say he paid Donald Decker, 52 of Gouldsboro, to set his business on fire. Dana's was in a historic building that dated back to the 1700s.

Jason Dwyer of Mount Pocono reacted to the news saying, "Some people might have lost their job, they're out on the street. You gotta think about stuff like that. But some people don't care. They try to make money fast."

The fire happened last October. Kyriakopoulos told police he was on vacation at the time.

Jerome DeKalb Senior is a retired firefighter. He was angry to hear about the charges because he said firefighters could have been hurt for no good reason. He added, "You put the firefighters at risk. And you know every firefighter has a wife and children. The children respect their father for what he does."

According to the indictment, Kyriakopoulos agreed to pay Decker $25,000 cash from the insurance money. He is also accused of using the US Mail to submit insurance documents, so he is facing Federal Mail Fraud charges.

Officials did not say how the fire started. They also didn't specify how much money the business owner received from his insurance company.

Kyriakopoulos is scheduled for a court hearing next Friday. A judge will decide whether or not he will be allowed to post bail.