Property owner arrested for arson and Fraud in Albany

A Cohoes man who reportedly fell behind on the mortgage payments of a four-unit apartment building he owns on Sherman Avenue in Albany was arrested Tuesday for setting fire to the building hours after his tenants left.

Kerry Bennett, 28, was charged with arson and insurance fraud.

Investigators say Bennett set the June 7 fire and tried to defraud State Farm Insurance Company out of more than $50,000, the amount of the insurance claim he filed after the fire at 243 Sherman Avenue.

Police say video from a security camera mounted on a building next door showed that Bennett was the last person known to be in the house before the fire started.

The late night blaze engulfed the entire top floor of the building and damaged an adjacent home at 241 Sherman Ave., which is also owned by Bennett.

He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.