Woman accused of setting her apartment building on fire allegedly admits: 'The devil made me do it. There are ghosts in my house.'



A woman in Boston is in custody facing an arson charge after officials claimed she made some disturbing admissions while firefighters attempted to put out a fire raging through her apartment building.

At around 11 a.m. Tuesday morning, members of the Boston Fire Department were called to a two-alarm fire in a three-story wooden structure located in Dorchester, about eight miles south of downtown. The fire began on the first floor of the structure but spread quickly to all three levels. Two residents on the second floor had to be rescued via ground ladder, and one of them had to be taken to the hospital and treated for smoke inhalation.

Just before noon, a tweet from Boston FD indicated that the fire had officially been doused.

"Heavy fire is knocked," the tweet claimed, though it also added that "[a]ll companies" were still "working on hot spots."

\u201cHeavy fire is knocked two residents are being evaluated by \u2066@BOSTON_EMS\u2069 . All companies working on hot spots\u201d
— Boston Fire Dept. (@Boston Fire Dept.) 1672160047

With the fire under control, investigators at the scene soon began to suspect that a female resident of the building, 45-year-old Nikea Rivera, had been the one to start the fire. According to reports, Rivera made a series of disturbing admissions regarding the fire and the building itself that morning.

"I had to do it," Rivera allegedly told some police officers. "That house is haunted. I lit the house on fire."

"The devil made me do it," Rivera reportedly added. "There are ghosts in my house."

Rivera was then arrested and charged with one count of arson. In a court hearing later that day, a judge ordered Rivera to be given a mental health examination at the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health Worcester Recovery Center and Hospital. Rivera is scheduled to appear in court again on January 13.

With a suspect in custody, city officials say they are just grateful that the fire did not cause any serious injuries.

"It’s fortunate that this woman’s actions did not result in any residents or responders being seriously injured or killed," said District Attorney Kevin Hayden. "Her statements are obviously disturbing, and an immediate evaluation is the proper next step."

The following video shows some of the clean-up efforts later that evening:

\u201cHere\u2019s the aftermath of the house fire at 74 Mora Street in Dorchester, where earlier today Nikea Rivera was arrested after commiting Arson. Crews are out here working hard getting the house boarded up. #Boston25\u201d
— James Cullity (@James Cullity) 1672188253

One dead, several victims 'mangled,' after man drove SUV into Boston area Apple store, pinning bodies against inside wall



A male driver sped into an Apple store in the Boston area on Monday morning, killing one and injuring at least 17 people.

What are the details?

911 calls began to pour in from the neighboring Derby Street shops around 10:45 a.m., after a man drove a black SUV through the front plate-glass window of an Apple store in the Boston suburb of Hingham, reported the Independent.

The driver struck multiple people inside the establishment.

The Hanover Fire Department indicated shortly after the incident that multiple people were "injured/trapped."

\u201c#HFD C-8 is responding with the Plymouth County Tech Rescue Team to 94 Derby Street, the Derby Street Shoppes, for the technical rescue activation. Motor vehicle into a building with multiple injured/trapped.\u201d
— Hanover Fire Department (@Hanover Fire Department) 1669047124

Plymouth County District Attorney Tim Cruz suggested that some victims had been pinned to the inside wall of the store.

Firefighters appeared to have helped someone trapped under the vehicle inside the store.

Some bystanders reportedly leapt into action to provide aid to those injured both inside and outside the store right after the incident.

One male victim has been confirmed dead.

A statement issued by Apple suggested that the deceased may have been a "professional who was onsite supporting recent construction at the store."

WCVB reported that victims have been transported to various hospitals in the area.

South Shore Health is presently treating 17 victims for various injuries, including head trauma and "mangled" limbs. The hospital's chief of trauma, Dr. Christopher Burns, indicated that multiple patients have life-threatening injuries, meaning the death count may soon rise.

\u201cVehicle crashes into Mass. Apple store https://t.co/X63JLvQOx7\u201d
— WCVB-TV Boston (@WCVB-TV Boston) 1669047156

Cruz said that the driver was being interviewed by police and that a criminal investigation is underway, suggestive that this may have been an intentional attack.

One witness claimed that while the driver appeared to have been injured in the crash, the man had nevertheless been alert.

The district attorney said, "this morning was an unthinkable morning, and people are trying to get through it and process what happened."

Alarming images are presently circulating revealing a gaping hole in the front window of the Apple store. Shattered glass and what appears to be blood stains can also be seen on the ground near the entry point.

\u201cJust getting this picture from a contact in Hingham, MA and the rescues underway right now. I\u2019m being told four people are trapped in the Apple store. @boston25\u201d
— Blair Miller (@Blair Miller) 1669047691

One witness who was nearby the store at the moment of impact told NBC10 that "all of a sudden we hear this, I don't want to say explosion but a bang, a very loud bang. So we jumped up from the table and we looked out the window and we could see the hole in the Apple Store."

Police began attempting to remove the SUV lodged inside the building around 3 p.m. Footage shows HPD preparing the break more glass to retrieve the vehicle:

\u201cHingham Police say they need to break the plate glass window in order to remove the SUV inside the Apple Store because it\u2019s too dangerous.#Boston25\u201d
— John Monahan (@John Monahan) 1669061215

Hingham fire chief Steve Murphy said that the building commissioner and the Plymouth County Technical Rescue Team have indicated that the structural integrity of the building has not been compromised.

\u201cHere\u2019s another angle showing where the car drove through the glass @NBC10\u201d
— Joanna Bouras (@Joanna Bouras) 1669057948

State Senator Patrick O’Connor (R) tweeted, "My thoughts are with those who have been injured and impacted by the incident at the Hingham Derby Street Shops this morning. Sadly, there are reports of at least one individual having passed due to injuries on the scene and my prayers are with their family."

Businesses boarding up in cities across the country in anticipation of election chaos: 'It's pretty scary'



There are still four days until the 2020 presidential election, but businesses in major cities across the United States are already preparing for the worst. This week, there was a major push by businesses to board up storefronts in American cities, including Boston, Chicago, Denver, New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C.

Many of the large cities have already been plagued with protests and violent riots since the early summer, but business owners are anticipating potentially worse chaos on Election Day, and what could turn into election week(s) when the official winner is declared.

In Washington, D.C., luxury retailers have already begun to board up their shops ahead of Tuesday's election. Alex Provenzano, who owns a salon in downtown D.C., boarded up his door and windows on Wednesday.

"I'm usually a very positive person; I hope for the best," Provenzano told USA Today. "But the people are very stressed out, and there is a lot of uncertainty in the country right now. It's pretty scary."

There are even barriers and fences being constructed in the neighborhood near the White House.

Washington DC is boarding up shopfronts, preparing for election destruction. This is the 3rd time they’ve done this… https://t.co/nhh2bGLcwR
— David Lipson (@David Lipson)1603825037.0
Stores near the White House have been boarding up windows ahead of Election Day next week: https://t.co/BM0uL6vDOe
— Nancy Chen (@Nancy Chen)1604075626.0
Luxury shops in DC are boarding up in anticipation of the election. https://t.co/3VMVkvoMsG
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️)1604013036.0
The entire neighborhood surrounding the White House is preparing for mass unrest: boards, chains, fences, and barri… https://t.co/srvOeW1dSo
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️)1604062562.0
With #ElectionDay only a week away businesses in Downtown #DC are gearing up for what could be a night of violence… https://t.co/QNc38cOUld
— Jesse Varner (@Jesse Varner)1603824223.0

Los Angeles has already been hit hard by riots over the past months, which has caused many business to board up previously. Now more business owners are preparing for even more upheaval.

The city of Beverly Hills has reportedly already decided to close down the iconic and swanky Rodeo Drive shopping area on Nov. 3 and 4.

Driving through downtown LA...so many businesses boarded up & in the process of boarding up. Same thing happening i… https://t.co/HsHhcH7sON
— Bill Melugin (@Bill Melugin)1604019495.0

Plywood was also seen being put up on storefronts in San Francisco as if a hurricane was imminent.

Shops in downtown SF boarding up in anticipation of the election. https://t.co/lxYjkm82CI
— Brock Keeling (@Brock Keeling)1604027186.0

In Boston, portions of the Prudential Center was boarded up on Thursday to prevent property damage.

In case it gets ugly on election day, businesses are boarding up around the Prudential Center in Boston. ⁦@boston25… https://t.co/zqx4wN4Nk7
— Malini Basu (@Malini Basu)1604009864.0

In Chicago, businesses along the Magnificent Mile shopping area are boarded up, and there are barriers still remaining from previous protests that escalated into civil unrest.

The Santa Monica Police Department said they have no intelligence of civil unrest on Election Day, but said, "We also know that things can change rapidly and are actively monitoring the situation."

"We have received questions about reinforcing storefronts. As a Police Department, we cannot tell business what to do when it comes to boarding up," the SMPD statement said. "However, we understand the need to feel secure and we respect your decisions on how to handle your day to day operations. If you choose to board up your business or want to have the materials ready to do so, we support you."

In New York City, the NYPD advised businesses located in Midtown Manhattan to "take additional security measures in preparation for the possibility of large-scale demonstrations around the coming presidential election," according to the Wall Street Journal.

The NYPD told businesses they should "move or secure items such as street furniture, trash cans and small planters that are located at sidewalks and plazas adjacent to storefronts before the Nov. 3 election."

ServiceChannel, which provides facility management software and contractor sourcing for 550 brands, noted that "companies including at least 10 luxury brands had ordered board ups or other security measures at 539 locations around the U.S.," according to Quartz.

Professionally boarding up a store can cost more than $5,000, and up to $20,000 for a large store, according to ServiceChannel.