A man accused of setting fire to a Longmont woman’s apartment has accepted a plea deal and is serving three years of probation.
Jeremiah Lucero, 35, pleaded guilty Sept. 6 to harassment and second-degree arson for the May 29 incident. Two other charges were dismissed as part of the agreement.
On each count, Lucero received a sentence of 60 days in jail, to run concurrently and to be served based on his 267 days credit for time served. Lucero also received two years’ probation on each charge to be served concurrently.
In a December case, Lucero received 60 days in jail, to be served concurrently with the other prison terms, and to be completed with credit. He also received one year of probation, to be served consecutively with the probation sentences in the May case, for a total of three years of probation.
Jeremiah Anthony Lucero (Courtesy of Boulder County Sheriff’s Office)
On May 29, 2023 at 2:04 a.m., Longmont Police searched the area of McCarthy’s Pub at 30 S. Main St. to identify a man suspected of arson. The man allegedly set a fire at a Longmont apartment in the 000 block of 19th Avenue and smashed the windshield of a vehicle.
The arson victim reported the incident to police after Lucero set fire to a basket of items in her apartment and ran outside.
According to the affidavit, the woman and Lucero were introduced through a mutual friend at the pub on May 28. The woman drove back to her house to decompress from the presence of drunk people.
According to the affidavit, when they arrived at her home, Lucero asked the woman to drive him back to McCarthy’s Pub to pick up his bicycle. When the woman told Lucero she needed a few minutes to get ready, Lucero said, “This is what you get (expletive).”
Lucero then set fire to the woman’s belongings and left the home, heading toward the pub, according to the affidavit.
The woman used water from her Brita filter to put out the fire and then decided to confront Lucero at the pub, the affidavit said. When the woman arrived, Lucero told the woman she was lucky he didn’t kill her. When the woman picked up her keys and left, Lucero knocked a marker out of her hand and hit her in the face.
According to the affidavit, when the victim left the pub and got into her car, Lucero smashed the woman’s windshield three times with a U-shaped bicycle lock.
After police arrived at the woman’s home, they found another smoldering fire in the woman’s closet. The woman later identified Lucero in a blind photo lineup.
On Dec. 13 around 9:01 p.m., Lucero was arrested again after officers were dispatched to Westview Liquors at 1716 Main St. to investigate a disturbance, according to an affidavit.
Employees at the liquor store called authorities after a man dressed all in black on a bicycle smashed the store’s windows, tried to steal alcohol and threatened employees. According to the affidavit, officers found Lucero riding a bicycle near 21st Avenue and Pratt Street and detained him on outstanding warrants.
