Odendahl
GOSHEN – A Crawford man was sentenced in Orange County Court on Friday to 11 years in state prison plus 2 ½ years of post release supervision in connection with the December 13, 2014 fire that he set in the Town of Montgomery. John Odendahl, 26, pled guilty to arson on August 6.
In the early morning hours of December 13, 2014, Odendahl broke into a Town of Montgomery home and stole $25,000 in cash from the resident’s safe. He then set fire to some clothes in a bedroom closet where the safe was located. Odendahl then left the house, leaving several people asleep inside.
The smell of the smoke awoke one of the residents before the fire overtook the entire house. No one inside was injured.
“The over one decade in state prison that this defendant will serve is commensurate with the seriousness of this crime, which put numerous people’s lives at risk,” said District Attorney David Hoovler. “Arson is one of the most insidious crimes that an offender can commit. It endangers everyone in the building as well as professional and volunteer firefighters who risk their lives daily to protect us and our property.”
