SI Advance

He allegedly set the blaze because his father was not paid for repair work; for victims another setback

Admitted firebug Stephen Udvari, 25, of 168 Baden Place, was arrested early yesterday morning by fire marshals almost exactly 24 hours after he set the 4 a.m. Friday blaze that gutted 164 Baden Place, authorities said.

"Even though we couldn't build our dream house, we were renovating what we had," said homeowner Linda DeCosimo-Russo. She and Richard Russo, her husband of 20 years, had been socking every dime they had saved into the construction while they spent the last five weeks staying at the Cosmopolitan Hotel, Grasmere. "Now we've got nothing. Nothing."

PAST STRUGGLES

Before their home was torched, Russo and Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo had already struggled with hardships in life.

Both had recently battled cancer and both had experienced untimely deaths in the family -- Russo losing his first wife in a car accident and Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo's 15-year-old daughter being murdered.

And, a prior contractor had already ripped them off for tens of thousands of dollars.

"We've been through a lot and just wanted a nice place to live," said Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo.

A law enforcement source said Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo and Udvari's father -- also named Stephen, 53 -- had an argument centering around repairs the elder Udvari had performed on Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo's car.

"He fixed the car on May 16 and wanted $375," Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo recalled. "But then the same problem happened again on May 22, so I had to take it to a repair shop and pay $185."

REFUSED TO PAY

In light of the extra costs she incurred and suspecting slipshod work done by the elder Udvari, Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo refused to pay the man.

"On May 30, in front of two other people, he confronted me and threatened, 'Payback's a [expletive],'" Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo recalled.

A week later, at 4 a.m., her unoccupied home was ravaged by a two-alarm blaze.

Approximately 25 fire units and more than 105 firefighters tackled the inferno, which sent five firefighters to Staten Island University Hospital, Ocean Breeze, with minor injuries.

The source said the younger Udvari claimed to have discovered the fire and was subsequently interviewed by fire marshals.

At the Mid-Island's 122nd Precinct, the source continued, marshals questioning Udvari determined he had a lot of detailed information on the fire, and Udvari eventually admitted to setting the blaze at 164 Baden Place, which had spread to five surrounding structures, including Udvari's own home.

"He was mad his father wasn't paid for work," said the source. "He's an admitted pyromaniac."

Fire marshals placed Udvari under arrest early yesterday morning at about 4 a.m., sources said. Also assisting in the investigation were the NYPD's Arson and Explosion Squad and the 122nd Precinct's Detective Squad and Intelligence Unit, authorities said.

Udvari was previously arrested for setting two brush fires in New Dorp Beach in 2006, according to Advance archives. While being held at Rikers Island, Udvari suffered from depression and was placed on suicide watch.

The outcome of that case wasn't immediately known.

A law enforcement source added that Udvari was also arrested on vehicular arson charges in December 1999. Since he was a juvenile, the disposition of that case was unavailable.

ANOTHER BLAZE

Although the investigation into the Baden Place fire is complete, the source said that fire marshals are still actively investigating a suspicious blaze early Monday morning that raced through two bungalows at 237 and 237A Freeborn St.

Udvari has not been implicated in those fires, sources added.

Udvari is charged with five counts of second-degree arson, five counts of second-degree assault (stemming from the injured firefighters) and first-degree reckless endangerment, according to a Fire Department spokesman.

He is expected to be arraigned today at Stapleton Criminal Court, sources said.

Neither the younger or elder Udvari could be reached for comment yesterday.

Meanwhile Russo and Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo are wondering what they'll do to recover from this latest tragedy.

Hard times first struck Russo in 1984 when his first wife, Debra, was killed at the age of 24 in a car accident on Richmond Avenue near the Staten Island Mall in New Springville.

Then, in 1989, a year after he met Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo, her 15-year-old daughter, Ann Marie Sullivan, was strangled to death in an upstate youth home by her lover, another Staten Island teen. The suspect, Ronald Appling, then 19, served 16 years in jail after being convicted on first-degree manslaughter, according to the Department of Correctional Services database.

A little more than a decade later, Russo became sick with throat cancer in 2001 and Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo battled breast cancer in 2004 and 2005.

Formerly self-employed in the T-shirt making business, the couple took early retirement due to illness but still managed to save for repairs to their dream home.

But they had even less money available after, Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo claims, a contractor ripped them off for $52,000.

Still, they managed to persevere.

"It wasn't what we wanted, but what we could afford," Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo said. "It was like the angels had come and we finally got our wish."

The fire allegedly set by Udvari destroyed everything -- appliances, the couple's SUV, sports memorabilia and the tools the new contractor was storing at the home during the project.

"We thought we'd be celebrating our 20th anniversary with housewarming party on August 8," said Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo. "There's no way it will be done."

Fortunately, her cat -- Precious -- was saved, emerging yesterday from the ashes as Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo toured the property. "Thank God at least she survived," Mrs. DeCosimo-Russo. "Her new name is Phoenix."