Serial arsonist handed 15-year prison sentence

SCHENECTADY — A serial arsonist is headed back to prison for 15 years for lighting a next-door neighbor’s residence on fire with people inside — then striking again at a vacant building on the same street a few months later, according to the Schenectady County District Attorney’s Office.

Joshua Robinson, 37, of Schenectady received the sentence earlier this week in a Schenectady County courtroom that also calls for him to complete five years of post-release supervision once he’s done serving time.

It was not immediately clear why Robinson targeted the properties last year.

In January, Robinson pleaded guilty to second-degree arson, admitting he intentionally set fire to a two-family home on Schenectady Street in March 2022. Everyone inside the building was able to make it out safely, but the dwelling sustained extensive damage, authorities said.

Investigators determined through video analysis that Robinson deliberately started the fire near a window on the first floor in an alley connecting the residence with the building next door to where he was living, said the district attorney’s office.

On the same day in June when Robinson was arrested for setting the blaze on his block, another suspicious fire happened at a vacant building, also on Schenectady Street, authorities said. He was later indicted by a county grand jury for both fires.

The defendant’s admission covers the two fires.

The district attorney’s office said in a news release that Robinson has “a history of setting fires” and was previously convicted of arson in 2012 and given a sentence of 1½ to 4½ years.

The fire probe was jointly handled by county fire investigators, city police, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

In a statement, District Attorney Robert Carney thanked the investigative agencies for their hard work, adding in part that “these (arson probes) are complex investigations that require time and dedicated resources, but the crime of arson is so dangerous and destructive.”

Assistant District Attorney Michael Dematteo handled the case, while Robinson is represented by attorney John Dellaratta.