NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A 13-year-old boy has been charged after he allegedly sparked the fire that destroyed a "beloved" East Village stationary store earlier this month, police said Tuesday.
The teen, who has not been named due to his age, was arrested last Tuesday and charged with with arson, reckless endangerment and criminal mischief in connection to the 2-alarm fire that erupted at Essex Card Shop on Jan. 10.
Authorities did not release any additional details about the case.
ABC 7 reports that the suspect was the last customer the store manager saw before the fire broke out.
Saba Aslam, whose family owns the store on Avenue A, said in a GoFundMe fundraiser that the entire store was destroyed by the fire.
"Thank God everyone made it out alive! This fundraiser can really help this small business pick themselves up again and recover from this. Every single corner of this store is burned, damaged, and destroyed," she wrote.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the fundraiser had raised nearly $70,000.
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