A Sykesville man who pleaded guilty to pouring gasoline inside his family’s home and setting it on fire was sentenced this week to 18 months of incarceration.
Michael T. Weisgerber, 61, pleaded guilty to first-degree arson in Carroll County Circuit Court in July. On Wednesday, Judge Fred S. Hecker sentenced him to 18 months, followed by five years of supervised probation, according to online court records.
Weisgerber will get credit for time served since his Nov. 25, 2025, arrest.
At the time of the fire, Weisgerber had been living in an RV in the driveway of the Sherry Drive home after being estranged from his wife for several months, according to the Office of the State Fire Marshal. On the morning of Nov. 25, 2025, he went inside the house while his wife was outside, locked the door, spread gasoline through the house and lit it, officials said at the time. Gas fumes caused an explosion that blew a back door out of its frame.
No one was killed in the blaze. Weisgerber was treated at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center for respiratory distress.
Weisgerber told investigators he made sure his wife was not inside the house before he set the fire, the fire marshal’s office said. When deputies arrived, he was standing outside and told them he had started the blaze, officials said.
The fire destroyed the home and caused about $300,000 in damage. About 50 firefighters, led by the Gamber & Community Fire Company, brought the one-alarm fire under control.
Weisgerber has been held without bond since his arrest. Judges ordered him held at an initial bail review in November 2025 and again at a bond review hearing in March, court records show.
An attorney for Weisgerber could not immediately be reached for comment.
Story courtesy of the Carroll County Times.
https://www.baltimoresun.com/2026/11/05/sykesville-fire-home-sentencing-marital-dispute/ (opens in a new tab) |
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