Lakewood cops say denied insurance claim for broken Maserati led to arson
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Prosecutors allege two men set fire to collect money tied to a Maserati warranty denial.
- Investigators used surveillance, license plates and cell-phone records to ID suspects.
- Defendants pleaded not guilty; both bonded out.
A fire that left a car repair shop in Lakewood closed for nearly a year was arson, according to Pierce County prosecutors, and court documents allege two men involved did it to collect insurance money for an Italian sports car.
Jhamaul Wezley Alexander Thierry, 36, and Dante Lee Berry, 38, have each pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree arson and second-degree burglary for the March 18, 2025 fire at a business on South 96th Street.
Berry’s defense attorney, Michael Stewart, told The News Tribune on Friday that his client looks forward to fighting his case in court.
“There is no evidence that he was present on the property and no evidence that he participated in any way in the events that occurred there,” Stewart said in a text message. “We are confident that when all the facts are presented in court, the truth will come out. Meanwhile, Mr. Berry will focus on working to provide for his immediate family and being a present father to his children and steady partner to his wife.”
In contacts with police during the course of their investigation, Berry allegedly said he knew Thierry but denied having anything to do with the arson.
A phone number listed for Thierry in court records went straight to voicemail Friday, and he did not respond to a text. A defense attorney for the man was not listed in court records.
The owner of the auto shop did not respond to an email requesting comment last month. In a victim-impact statement filed with the court, the owner said the arson endangered nearby businesses, put firefighters and first responders at risk, displaced employees and caused ongoing financial harm.
“It destroyed a building that has been part of my life since childhood,” the owner wrote. “I grew up at this property. There is no financial measure for that loss.”
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Charging documents filed Jan. 28 allege that Thierry’s girlfriend had her silver 2017 Maserati towed to the auto shop 10 days before the fire. Diagnostic tests found its engine had failed, and it needed more than $30,000 worth of repairs.
The woman asked the business to coordinate with an extended warranty company, according to an affidavit authored by a Lakewood Police Department detective included in charging documents. The company requested maintenance records and information on the car, but she wasn’t able to produce any documentation. The woman allegedly suggested that the auto shop fabricate something to facilitate warranty coverage.
The business declined to do so, and the extended warranty coverage for the Maserati was denied, according to the detective’s affidavit. The woman was informed of the denial March 18, and she paid outstanding diagnostic fees and said she would be sending a tow truck for the vehicle the next day.
That night, at about 10:15 p.m., surveillance cameras showed a suspect wearing a respirator and blue latex gloves trying to force their way into the business through a back door, records state. The suspect failed and left the property, then returned in a vehicle at about 11:45 p.m.
Cameras allegedly showed a white sedan park on a side street. The suspect got out, broke a window on the building’s garage door and got inside. Interior cameras captured the person opening the rear door and immediately throwing a road flare or other incendiary device into the Maserati.
The suspect threw another flare into a Range Rover, then left through the broken window. Both vehicles were engulfed in flames within minutes, according to the probable cause document, and smoke filled the building.
Suspect allegedly cased business morning before fire
Investigators used the surveillance videos, license-plate reading data and cell-phone records to tie the fire to Thierry and Berry. Charging documents allege Thierry set the fire, and Berry’s vehicle was used to get Thierry to and from the scene.
The charges allege cell-phone records place Berry in the area of the fire when it broke out, and that the driver of his car — who is not identified in court documents — acted as a lookout while Thierry broke in.
Surveillance video also allegedly showed a different vehicle connected to Thierry, a Chevy Impala, drove through the auto shop’s parking lot the morning before the fire. The detective wrote in the probable cause document that it was reasonable to believe Thierry was driving, and they said it appeared he was casing the location.
Detectives determined the vehicle used in the arson was a white BMW sedan registered to a man identified in court records only as J.Y., who allegedly had ties to a street gang in Tacoma and is a convicted felon. About a week after the fire, Tacoma police stopped the vehicle in the area of 84th and South Hosmer streets. Berry was driving it, and officers found the BMW was listed as a suspect vehicle in the arson.
Tacoma police asked Lakewood officers to respond. According to the probable cause document, Berry provided a bill of sale showing he’d bought the BMW for $1,800 on March 4, 2025, but he said he hadn’t yet transferred the vehicle’s title in his name. Berry allegedly told police he regularly let some of his friends drive the car.
Authorities impounded the car. Later that month, detectives obtained a search warrant, and they found a yellow and black sledgehammer in the trunk. The probable cause document noted that a yellow and black hammer was seen in the arson suspect’s pocket on surveillance footage. It was allegedly used during the initial break-in attempt.
Cell-phone records described in charging documents allegedly showed that Thierry’s device began moving from his residence toward the area of the auto shop at about 9:19 p.m., and Berry’s device didn’t start moving that direction until a little more than an hour after the first break-in attempt failed.
Berry’s BMW was allegedly seen turning west on South 96th Street and staging on a side street shortly before the arson. Surveillance video allegedly showed the driver get out and walk to the corner “likely to act as a lookout.”
Then the suspect identified as Thierry exited a rear passenger door and broke into the business, according to the probable cause document. After the fire started, both individuals ran back to the car. Cell-phone records allegedly showed Thierry and Berry’s devices left the area immediately after the arson.
Defendants released on bond
Bench warrants were issued for the arrest of Thierry and Berry Jan. 28. Charging documents say detectives were going to rely on SWAT teams to help arrest the suspects.
Berry was arraigned Feb. 17 in Pierce County Superior Court. Court Commissioner Barbara McInvaille initially set bail at $100,000, records state. A bond for his release from jail was filed in court the next day, and records state he remains on electronic home monitoring.
Berry has previous felony convictions for unlawful delivery of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of a firearm, first-degree burglary and second-degree identity theft, according to court records. His defense attorney has noted in court hearings that he has not had any criminal history since 2018.
Thierry was arraigned Feb. 20, and court records show McInvaille set bail at $125,000. A bond for his release was filed in court three days later. His conditions of release did not appear to include home detention monitoring.
Thierry has previous felony convictions for second-degree assault, first-degree theft, possession of a stolen vehicle and unlawful possession of a firearm, according to court records. He was also charged in February with attempting to elude pursuing police officers.
