Details Emerge in Hastings Apartment Arson Case

HASTINGS, Neb. — Twenty-one-year-old Elijah Born of Hastings had his arraignment hearing Monday. According to court documents, surveillance footage shows Born with a 15-year-old when the teenager lit a traffic cone on fire under a staircase inside the Brewery Lofts Apartments on Second Street, just east of Colorado Avenue.

Records indicate that once the fire was started, the two left the scene without attempting to put the fire out or call for help. The fire department was not notified until a resident opened the smoke-filled stairwell.

Four people were taken to a nearby hospital with smoke inhalation.

The two were taken into custody later that afternoon. Born was initially charged with first-degree arson, but the charges were amended during the arraignment to aiding and abetting a Class II felony and possession of a firearm while committing a felony. Both are Class II felonies, which can carry a maximum sentence of up to 50 years in prison.

Bond was set at $50,000 for Born, along with a no-contact order between him and the teenager involved. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Feb. 13 in Adams County.