Spring Valley assistant building inspector Raymond Canario, who also serves as deputy fire chief of the Rockland Hook And Ladder Company, pleaded innocent Wednesday to nine criminal complaints involving the Spring Valley senior living facility that was the scene of a fatal fire in March.
The fire killed a 79-year-old resident of the Evergreen Court Adult Home, Oliver Hueston, and volunteer firefighter Jared Lloyd.
Canario was indicted on three counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, three counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the second degree, and three counts of falsifying business records in the second degree. He pled innocent to the charges, which dealt with inspections of the facility in years before the fire, according to News 12.
Canario is among six people charged in connection to the fire. Spring Valley Building Department Chief Wayne Ballard has also been indicted on three counts of filing fraudulent reports. A duo of father and son rabbis, Nathaniel and Aaron Sommer, face the most serious charges in the case. They allegedly set the fire accidentally while purifying the kitchen stoves for Passover. The men are charged with second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, fourth-degree arson, second-degree reckless endangerment, and three separate assault charges. All parties have pled innocent.
In another development New York state moved to seize control of fire and safety enforcement in Spring Valley and deputized Rockland County government to temporarily take over those duties.
Canario, meanwhile, in an interview with NBC New York, said his actions had nothing to do with the tragic fire. He responded to the fire in his capacity as deputy chief, and says the shock of losing a fellow firefighter has lead to his hospitalization for psychiatric treatment.
