OKEECHOBEE — Braden Hewitt, 21, of Okeechobee was arrested by the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office June 20 in regards to a vehicle fire that occurred in May.

According to the arrest report, on May 27, at approximately 4:45 p.m. a deputy responded to a call on the 19200 block of Northwest 264th Street in reference to a vehicle on fire. Upon arrival the deputy saw the burnt shell of an SUV that appeared to have been driven off the road through some brush and into wetland.

While on scene a second call came in not far from the deputy’s location in reference to a male in his 20s being found with gas burns to his face and his arms. The deputy drove to that location and made contact with the male who was identified as Braden Hewitt. Hewitt claimed that he was walking down the side of the road with a gas can when a man drove by and flicked a cigarette out of his window that hit Hewitt and lit him on fire. The deputy asked Hewitt if anyone had been with him, which Hewitt denied. The deputy then mentioned the vehicle fire and asked Hewitt to tell him the truth to which Hewitt replied that he did not know what the deputy was talking about and that he had just been walking.

The deputy made contact with Hewitt’s mother who said that Hewitt had been out with another young man that day. The deputy made contact with the other boy’s mother who contacted him. When asked where he was the boy said that he was in the prairie and hung up.

The deputy returned to the scene with the vehicle where they made contact with a Division of Fire Marshal agent who confirmed that it was an arson incident and they believed that the vehicle was possibly stolen.

Once the vehicle fire was extinguished, a Chevy emblem was located and some remnants of what appeared to be black paint. The deputy asked dispatch if any Chevy vehicles had been reported stolen locally and dispatch advised the deputy that a black Chevy Equinox had been reported stolen that morning by M&M Auto. The vehicle was towed to Total Roadside’s secure facility where it could be further investigated.

The deputy searched the prairie for the other suspect, where it was presumed he was located, but was unable to find him. Deputies attempted to contact Hewitt for further questioning but were informed he had been flown to Kendall Hospital in Miami to treat his injuries.

The arrest report states that a man who lived at a residence near where the vehicle fire took place contacted OCSO with information regarding the incident. The witness explained that he was not home at the time of the incident but that his children were home and told him what happened later. The witness told deputies that the young man who had been with Hewitt on May 27 had been staying at his home temporarily.

On the date of the incident, the witnesses’ daughter had called him from home stating that the suspect had a car on the property but the witness found it suspicious because he knew that the suspect did not own a vehicle so he asked his daughter to tell the suspect to take the vehicle and leave his property and not come back. When the witness arrived home that evening he states he saw both the unnamed suspect and Hewitt in front of his home and both had burns on their bodies. The witness alleges that both boys asked him not to call law enforcement or EMS but that Hewitt was in so much pain he finally let the witness call EMS to treat his injuries.

On  May 30, the VIN on the burned vehicle was proven to be that of the stolen Chevy Equinox.

The deputy made contact with Hewitt on Tuesday, June 20, in the Okeechobee County Jail lobby. Hewitt  was placed under arrest and charged with arson in the second degree and criminal mischief $1,000 or more. Bond was set at $30,000.