A South Bend man has been charged with arson and theft after allegedly starting a fire and stealing a responding fire truck early Thursday morning.
Ramon Villalba, 30, is accused of taking a bright red South Bend Fire Department truck, marked with “102nd Battalion” on the side, from the scene of a residential fire in the 1800 block of Carroll Street.
The fire truck, responding to the blaze, was quickly located in the 1100 block of East Calvert Street. Police, in collaboration with the Real-Time Crime Center, found Villalba inside the stolen vehicle and took him into custody.
Villalba is also suspected of setting the fire that the truck was responding to, though no injuries were reported during the incident.
The investigation remains ongoing, and South Bend's Property Crimes Unit is handling the case. Further updates will be released as the investigation continues.
