SANTA CRUZ — The man officials believe is responsible for deliberately starting the Bear Fire that scorched close to 400 acres in Boulder Creek, starting on Oct. 16, and injuring 13 firefighters, made an appearance in Superior Court Tuesday.
The blaze also roasted two homes and forced about 150 evacuations and multiple road closures.
Marlan Dale Coy, 54, now faces 14 felony counts, including arson, which stems from a property dispute at 475 Diane’s Way, looting, burglary and grand theft.
Coy is being held at Santa Cruz County Main Jail in lieu of $800,000 bail.
“There are still a number of witnesses that investigators are actively working to contact,” said Assistant District Attorney Michael McKinney. “Arson cases are difficult. This case is an example of a cooperative investigation.”
Four outbuildings, 17 vehicles and five RV’s were also damaged in the blaze. A resident who lived on Hidden Springs Road returned on Oct. 17 to find their home had been burglarized. Missing was a bicycle, clothing and about $15,000 worth of jewelry.
Coy’s attorney, Sarah Schumacher, asked for a much lower bail but her plea was shot down by Judge John Salazar in Department 7.
At one point during the arraignment, Coy turned sharply toward District Attorney Jeff Rosell and mouthed, “You’re next.”
Coy, who has previous charges of brandishing a semiautomatic pistol, has denied starting the fire.
He has been ordered to return to Superior Court at 9 a.m. on Dec. 1.
The fire ran up a tab of about $7.1 million.
