Ballowe arrested for arson in January fire
Creekside Bed and Breakfast
Terrence Ballowe, 410 Chase Street, Black Hawk, turned himself in to Longmont law enforcement officials Wednesday, August 12, 2009. He was wanted on charges of Third Degree Arson, a Class Four Felony. Ballowe’s business, “A Creekside Bed and Breakfast” at 531 Chase Street, was discovered fully engulfed in flames on the afternoon of January 25, 2009. Black Hawk firefighters responded with such speed and efficiency the fire was out before all evidence of its origins had been destroyed.
The day after the fire, a Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) fire investigation agent brought in a dog trained to detect residues left by fire accelerants. The black Labrador alerted the agent in ten areas, indicating she had sniffed out traces of petroleum-based hydrocarbons. Samples were taken, some found to contain a heavy petroleum distillate, possibly lamp oil. Another tested positive for a light isoparaffinic product, possibly a solvent. When debris was scraped away from the linoleum floor of the kitchen, a liquid pour pattern could be clearly seen near a center island and connecting to the central living room. There were remains of paper wads in the bottom of a wall heating unit in the living room. That would provide a time-delayed ignition for the fire. Additionally the door to the room was left open. One way of setting such fires is to turn the thermostat to a high heat setting and open windows and/or doors. As the cold outside air flows in, the heater activates, setting fire to paper or other flammable materials stuffed inside it. The investigator determined the fire was set intentionally, probably originating in the living room and spreading to the kitchen.
Much of the CBI’s conclusions were supported by an independent investigation done by Ballowe’s insurance company, Depositors Insurance Company (a member of the Allied Insurance group). Their investigator was at the scene on January 27-29, and identified three areas where fire had started; the bottom of a spiral staircase, the center of the living room and the kitchen floor. Fire would not spread from one area to the other under normal fire transfer, he determined, but would need a trail, perhaps of ignitable liquid or paper. He noted the paper wads within the heater, the open front door and the pour pattern on the kitchen floor, plus paper found inside a kitchen wall heater. Electrical circuits in the areas of origin were eliminated as a possible cause. He ruled the cause of the fire, “Intentional.” On the 29th, a private investigator, hired by Ballowe, accompanied the insurance agent in his investigations. That investigator’s findings are unknown.
The insurance agent told CBI investigators Ballowe had increased his insurance coverage from $500,000 to nearly $1 million in April 2008, giving upgrades (a new roof and granite countertops) as the reason. (Investigators found no granite countertops.) He requested confirmation of that coverage on January 1, 2009. On January 23rd, and again on January 25th (just hours before the fire), Ballowe made inquiries about changing the policy into his parents’ names. In order to save $3,000 in insurance premiums, Ballowe had told Depositors Insurance the bed and breakfast was his primary residence. Investigators found no personal items at the bed and breakfast and later determined Ballowe lives at 410 Chase Street, the address noted on his drivers license and vehicle registration. He filed an insurance claim on the fire-damaged bed and breakfast on January 27th, indicating he would attempt to collect. A fire inspection of the bed and breakfast was overdue. The structure burned the day before Black Hawk Fire Department was to do the investigation.
Ballowe told investigators he had been at the bed and breakfast the afternoon of the fire, to pick up some items before going shopping. His home security cameras show he left there just thirteen minutes prior to the 911 call reporting the fire. Ballowe offered a possible cause of the fire: his vacuum cleaner was plugged into a lamp, which was plugged into a remote control switch (used to turn the lights on/off as he drove by) located near the stairway.
For the past few years, Ballowe has been at odds with Black Hawk’s City Council members and has made complaints about their conduct. Ballowe has initiated actions to recall the City’s elected officials, twice, successfully taking the recall to voters once, where it was defeated. Ballowe was defeated in his own run for City Council in 2008. Some Council members believe that Ballowe is one of the parties who brought in Denver Channel 7 investigative reporters John Ferrugia and Tony Kovalesky whose report, aired as an “expose,” resulted in negative publicity for the City. Ballowe also testified at a legislative hearing in March, 2009, in favor of Senate Bill 101, introduced by Senator Al White (District 8). The bill, which later passed, required Black Hawk to reorganize the Historic Architectural Review Commission (HARC) in order to receive state historical funding. Ballowe’s testimony had, again, called into question the conduct of the Council.
Over the past year, Ballowe has filed complaints against the City eight times, generally on charges of trespass and vandalism. The City has filed against Ballowe nine times for being out of compliance with City regulations. Black Hawk Aldermen had approved Ballowe’s request for demolition in May and his July request for architectural design to rebuild. Three days prior to the fire, during a meeting with a CBI agent, Ballowe asked the agent “What if they (Black Hawk Council members) burn 531 Chase Street?” However, when asked, after the fire, he said he did not think Black Hawk officials could be responsible.
Investigators noted several indicators of financial troubles. Ballowe’s delinquent sanitation bills had been certified to Gilpin County and added to property taxes in an attempt to collect. In 2008, the bed and breakfast property and Ballowe’s residence (410 Chase Street) had gone into foreclosure. Ballowe’s father paid to redeem the properties shortly before the November tax sale. By the time of the fire, Ballowe was 60 days late in payments. In a January loan application for $1.2 million from Country Wide Home Loans, Ballowe had made several statements investigators found to be false, about his home address, his marital status, his income and bankruptcy history. Ballowe listed the property value of 531 Chase Street as $1,430,000. It was appraised at $630,000 in 2006. Both Chase Street properties are again in foreclosure.
Ballowe’s $2,000 bail was paid and he is back on Chase Street waiting to appear in Gilpin County District Court at 9:00 a.m. on September 29, 2009. Third degree arson, a class four felony, carries a penalty range of fines from $2,000 to $500,000 and imprisonment of 2-6 years.stified at a legislative hearing, calling into question