Casey Sage, Arson, Indiana 2021

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – On May 2, 2021, a Beech Grove man set fire to two buildings at the Amtrak Facility in Beech Grove, Indiana, destroying the structures and their contents, and exposing first responders and Amtrak employees to a substantial risk of serious injury.

Casey Sage, 34, of Beech Grove, was arrested in Indianapolis on federal criminal charges related to the alleged arson. According to court documents, Sage trespassed onto the grounds of the Amtrak facility, located at 202 Garstang Street in Beech Grove, on the night of May 1, 2021. Surveillance video captured Sage as he moved around the Amtrak facility rail yard.

Early the next morning, Sage entered two storage buildings in the rail yard containing various flammable or hazardous chemicals and other materials. Sage ignited each building and its contents using railroad flares he picked up at the site. Both buildings quickly erupted in flames, and video surveillance captured several explosions and flying debris as first responders arrived and fought the flames. The buildings and their contents were destroyed, and Amtrak has estimated that the fires resulted in approximately one million dollars in damages.

Sage is charged with Arson. If convicted, Sage faces 5 to 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case was investigated by Amtrak’s Office of the Inspector General, Amtrak Police, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Beech Grove Fire Department, Beech Grove Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigations.

Assistant United States Attorneys William L. McCoskey and Adam Eakman are prosecuting this case for the government.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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