Balram Singh, 24, was ordered held in lieu of $2 million bail after pleading innocent to charges of third-degree stalking and second-degree menacing - a figure that his attorney called ``ridiculous, outrageous and unbelievable'' for someone accused of misdemeanors.
Nassau County Assistant District Attorney Fred Klein insisted that Singh had been ``engaged in a terror campaign against his former girlfriend,'' who lived in the apartment that was set ablaze by someone igniting gasoline in the hallway outside their door.
The prosecutor said at a news conference that, although no one has been charged with setting the fire, Singh is ``a significant suspect.'' Singh denies the allegation.
Klein defended the high bail, claiming Singh, a native of Guyana, was a flight risk.
Salima Ishmail, 26, was killed and six other members of her family were injured in the 4 a.m. fire last Monday at an apartment complex in Freeport. Five others, including at least one firefighter, suffered minor injuries. Investigators have determined that the fire in the 62-unit apartment complex was intentionally set outside the door of the first-floor apartment where the family was living.
Among those suffering from smoke inhalation was Holika Mangroo, Ishmai's 23-year-old sister, who police and prosecutors said had broken off a romantic relationship with Singh last February. Since that time, and especially in the last month or so, Singh allegedly made repeated telephone calls to the woman and has confronted her near the Freeport apartment a number of times.
Police also said that Singh was arrested in New York City in mid-June after calling her repeatedly at her workplace at the Empire State Building. He was given an appearance ticket for aggravated harassment and was scheduled to answer those charges in a Manhattan court on July 12, police said.
Detectives said Singh became a suspect in the early stages of the investigation after learning from Mangroo that he had allegedly been repeatedly trying to contact her over the past month.
Klein said that Singh denied being on Long Island early on Monday morning, but investigators have ``documentary proof'' that he left Long Island and drove to the Bronx 25 minutes after the fire was believed to have started at 4 a.m. Both Klein and police officials declined to elaborate and had no comment when asked whether it involved obtaining records of E-Z Pass bridge tolls for Singh's vehicle.
Singh, who works as a diesel mechanic in the Bronx, pleaded innocent to the two misdemeanor charges and was due back in court next Tuesday.
His attorney, Seth Muraskin, complained that prosecutors sought the prohibitively high bail ``so they can slow down their investigation and not be in a rush to indict anyone.''
Mursakin conceded that his client ``seems to be the suspect, but you would think with this amount of bail, they would have done something more'' than charge him with two misdemeanors.
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