Police are searching for a young man they believe fired a roman candle from his car earlier this month in Parkton, setting fire to 2 acres of the Prettyboy Reservoir woodlands and trying to ram an officer head-on.
The incident occurred around 7:30 p.m. Saturday as Baltimore County Officer Timothy McLaughlin drove southbound near the 3700 block of Beckleysville Road, according to the police report. He saw several red balls of fire from what appeared to be a roman candle shoot out the passenger side of a small, white car traveling north, and fly above his car.
As McLaughlin activated his emergency lights, the driver accelerated and crossed into his lane, attempting to ram the police cruiser. McLaughlin swerved to avoid impact, and ended up stuck in a drainage ditch as the driver sped away.
The fireballs hit the embankment and started three separate fires along a 100-yard stretch, the report says. As McLaughlin attempted to extinguish the flames, a passerby informed him another fire was burning on the other side of Beckleysville Road, about a quarter mile away.
Fire crews from the Maryland Line Volunteer Fire Company responded to extinguish the flames, which burned about 2 acres of woodlands.
Officers searching from the department?s chopper were unable to locate the vehicle and driver, who would likely be charged with first-degree assault on an officer.
Police called the incident “highly unusual,” and are asking the public for help identifying the unknown driver.
How to help
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the Precinct 7 Investigative Services Team at 410-887-1823.
