PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Daniel E. Saad, 50, of Spencer, Mass., pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court in Providence, R.I., on Thursday to arson and wire fraud charges, for allegedly devising a executing a scheme to set fire to his business in Glocester, R.I., in an effort to collect insurance.
Appearing before U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Patricia A. Sullivan, Saad pleaded not guilty to a federal indictment charging him with one count of arson, one count of use of fire to commit wire fraud, and two counts of wire fraud. Saad was released on unsecured bond following his arraignment.
The indictment, returned on Tuesday and unsealed on Thursday following Saad’s arrest and arraignment, is announced by United States Attorney Peter F. Neronha, Glocester Police Chief Joseph S. DelPrete, Daniel J. Kumor, Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Field Division of ATF, and Colonel Steven G. O’Donnell, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police.
According to the indictment and information presented to the court, it is alleged that in late November 2014, Saad, who was encountering significant debt, devised a scheme to collect insurance payments by setting fire to his business, Snow’s Clam Box Restaurant and Pub, and then filing a claim with his insurance company for any damages caused by the fire.
It is alleged in the indictment that on Nov. 30, 2014, Saad intentionally set fire to his business, causing significant damage, and that later the same day he filed an insurance claim with his insurance carrier.
An indictment is merely an allegation and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The matter was investigated by the Glocester Police Department, the Rhode Island State Fire Marshal’s Office, and ATF, with the assistance of the Rhode Island Department of the Attorney General.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney William J. Ferland.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
