Three Teens Arrested For Flip’s Restaurant Arson
Three suspects have been arrested for setting fire to Flip’s Uptown Restaurant in Montgomery last month.
The owner of Flip’s is still trying to decide what to do with this burned out building.
But he says he has mixed emotions about the three teens who were arrested for the crime.Â
Burgers are still flipping at the Taylor Road location of Flip’s Uptown Grill.
But things look very different at the restaurant’s Perry Hill location.
A fire a month ago left the building heavily damaged.
Arson investigators say three juveniles, two 16 year olds and one 17 year old, broke in through the back window to burglarize the business.
Investigators say that the fire was set to hide the burglary.
“So many times do we see people break into something, they steal, they do whatever they’re doing. They think they can set fire to cover it up. So that’s the motive for the arson portion,” said Capt. Mark Williams with the Montgomery Fire Department.
Owner Philip Philippou and his wife Stella think that the three teens were after the contents of a safe. He’s glad the suspects have been caught, but he knows their arrests affect more than just his business.
“It’s got to be really hard for the families of these young men. It’s a shame that they used such bad judgement and it’s going to affect their lives and their families’ lives forever. On behalf of my wife and my family and I, I’d like to say that I as a Christian forgive them,” said Philippou.
He’s is still feeling the impact of that fire. He had the difficult task of letting go of almost his entire staff from the Perry Hill restaurant after the blaze.
“Everyone was displaced over there. I was able to put one or two people to work over here. Of course I have a full staff here. You can’t just put people out to bring new people in,” said Philippou.
Authorities say the last suspect was arrested yesterday. Police can’t release their names because they’re juveniles, but they have all been charged with felony counts of burglary and arson.
