CLEARFIELD – A man accused of throwing a bowl of spaghetti at his girlfriend during a domestic disturbance and then setting fire to their trailer waived the charges to court at his preliminary hearing Wednesday at the Clearfield County Jail.
Jimmy Leonard McGonigal, 38, of Frenchville has been charged with risking catastrophe, reckless burning or exploding, recklessly endangering another person and harassment. His bail was modified from $10,000 monetary to unsecured at his hearing.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, state police were dispatched for an alleged disturbance Saturday on Keewaydin Road in Frenchville. While en route, state police were advised that McGonigal had allegedly set fire to the inside of his residence, but it had been contained and put out.
Upon arrival to the scene, the victim told state police her boyfriend, McGonigal, had been drinking and causing a disturbance. She alleged he had been throwing things around the trailer, including a bowl of spaghetti on her. The victim told state police she called 911 in order to report McGonigal’s behavior.
After she made the report, she told state police that McGonigal became upset. She said he went inside the trailer and came back out with two beers in his hand. She said he made the comment, “take that [expletive], I just lit the trailer on fire” and fled on foot into the woods behind their residence.
The victim said she went inside and saw the fire in the middle bedroom. She went back outside to yell for help, and McGonigal’s brothers came to help put out the fire. The victim told state police McGonigal had lit the mattress in the middle bedroom and a computer chair in the back bedroom.
She said they used water and liquid laundry detergent to put out the fire. She said they then threw the mattress and chair out into the front yard.
In an interview at the scene, one of McGonigal’s brothers said he saw McGonigal come out of the trailer and heard him say “don’t go into the trailer because he just lit a fire inside.” He initially thought his brother was lying until he heard the victim yelling for help.
He said he and his brother went over and saw the fire in two, different bedrooms. He said they got whatever they could find and put the fire out. He said if they hadn’t been around the trailer would have “went up.”
While at the scene, state police attempted to locate McGonigal with negative results. Later state police received a call that McGonigal was back at the residence. State police responded back to the scene, where McGonigal was taken into custody without incident.
