‘How could he do such a thing?’

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Lacey, the son of a local pastor, is accused of setting the Lawrence Avenue fire that killed four of his neighbors, a woman and three of her children, on Feb. 19.
“I was shocked to find out that it was him,” said Yolanda Lopez, the sister of Morena Vanegas, who died in the fire, along with her 19-year-old son, Saul Preza, and daughters Andrea Vanegas, 13, and Susanna Vanegas, 9. “I never thought he would do this, but it’s a relief that he was caught. I’m happy that he is no longer on the street, but now behind bars. I was afraid while the person was on the loose.”
A number of sources and relatives of the Vanegases described Lacey as lonely and isolated, and said his jealousy of Preza may have motivated him to start the fire. Police officials identified “hero complex” as the motive.
“Just because he was caught doesn’t make it any better,” said Jose Borjas, Morena Vanegas’s 24-year-old son who lives in Woodmere. “We want to know why he did this. How could he do such a thing and get rid of my family?”
Vanegas’s husband, Edit Vanegas, and two of their sons survived the fire.
Borjas said that Lacey was near his family at the funeral, and that he even shook their hands during the ceremony. “It’s sad,” Borjas said, “because he was from the neighborhood, and nobody would expect him to do this.”
Grace Candreva, 75, a neighbor of Lacey’s who lives on John Street in North Lawrence, said she was upset and amazed when she heard about the arrest. “After watching him grow up, you would never expect him to do something like this,” Candreva said. “He was polite and well-behaved. Nobody knows what his intentions really were.”
Lacey has been as a volunteer for the Lawrence-Cedarhurst Fire Department since May 2008, and police said he was on the first truck that responded to the fire. “Many of our volunteers risked their lives in an effort to save those who lost their lives,” department officials said in a written statement after Lacey’s arrest. “Mr. Lacey’s background check indicated no activity which would have disqualified him from service. Mr. Lacey has been suspended from the fire department pending the outcome of this criminal matter.”
Lawrence High School Principal Geoffrey Touretz found out about the arrest during the music department’s trip to Disney World last weekend. He said that the nearly 250 students on the trip were shocked to hear what Lacey had been accused of. “The kids are very concerned,” Touretz said. “I am sympathetic to all the victims of the tragedy and am pleased that the cops were able to identify the individual that committed this crime.”
Caleb’s father, Richard Lacey, is the pastor of the Outreach Church of God in Christ, down the block from the scene of the fire. After the blaze, neighbors said, Richard Lacey and the church offered to help the families that were affected.
Calls to the Lacey household and the church were not answered.
Lacey spent some of his time at Life Fitness Club, a gym not far from his home. He was a member there, and did some part-time janitorial work as well. Elaine Schick, the club’s sales manager, said she was shocked by the news of his arrest. “It’s unfortunate that he is being accused of this,” Schick said. “He was a nice kid that was starting to settle down and get his life in the right direction. It’s upsetting to hear what happened.”
Schick said she was not surprised, however, that the fire was allegedly set by someone who knew the family. “It seems to be the typical story that it’s someone that is a friend, a neighbor or someone that just lives close by,” she said. “It’s just a shame that this had to take place.”
Lacey has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
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