Pierce County prosecutors say a denied repair warranty on a 2017 Maserati sat at the center of a March 18, 2025 fire that gutted a Lakewood auto shop, shuttered the business and left employees sidelined for months. Investigators are calling it arson for insurance money, and they say a mix of surveillance footage, phone data and license-plate hits led them to two suspects.
According to charging documents filed January 28 and reported by The News Tribune, prosecutors have charged 36-year-old Jhamaul Wezley Alexander Thierry and 38-year-old Dante Lee Berry with first-degree arson and second-degree burglary. The filings allege Thierry torched the shop after an extended-warranty request on the Maserati was rejected because maintenance records were not produced and diagnostic work revealed more than $30,000 in needed repairs. Berry’s attorney told The News Tribune there is “no evidence” his client was at the scene or took part in the crime. Both men have pleaded not guilty.
How investigators say they tied the suspects to the blaze
Charging papers describe a methodical setup caught on multiple cameras. Around 10:15 p.m., a figure wearing a respirator and blue latex gloves allegedly tried a back door at the South 96th Street shop, then left. Roughly an hour and a half later, around 11:45 p.m., the same person returned, smashed a garage window and tossed what investigators describe as a road flare into both the Maserati and a Range Rover inside the shop.
Detectives say a white BMW sedan appears in the footage and was used to stage and support the break-in. According to prosecutors, cell-phone location records and license-plate-reader data put the BMW and certain devices in the area just before and shortly after the fire. Officers later impounded the BMW, obtained a search warrant and reported finding a yellow-and-black sledgehammer in the trunk that they say matches a hammer seen in the surveillance footage of the attempted first entry.
Court dates, bail and criminal records
Berry was arraigned February 17 in Pierce County Superior Court, where a court commissioner initially set his bail at $100,000. A bond was filed the next day, and court records indicate he is currently on electronic home monitoring.
Thierry was arraigned February 20 with bail set at $125,000. Court filings show a bond was posted several days later. Charging documents note that both men have prior felony convictions. Each has entered a not-guilty plea, according to The News Tribune.
Legal implications
Prosecutors are using statutes that elevate arson to a serious felony when a fire is set to collect insurance proceeds or is plainly dangerous to human life. In Washington, first-degree arson is defined in RCW 9A.48.020 (Washington State Legislature). The burglary count tracks the state’s definition of second-degree burglary, set out in RCW 9A.52.030 (Justia).
Prosecutors will have to prove the elements of those crimes along with any intent to collect on insurance. Convictions on first-degree arson and second-degree burglary can bring substantial prison time and factor heavily into plea negotiations and sentencing ranges.
Warranty denials and motive context
Consumer guides and industry explainers say extended-warranty and service-contract companies routinely require pre-authorization and proof of regular maintenance before they will pay for big-ticket repairs. Missing service records are a common reason claims get denied. According to investigators, that sort of paperwork standoff unfolded before the March 2025 fire and sits at the heart of the motive prosecutors describe in the charging documents.
For general background on how extended-warranty claims are supposed to work, see guides from LegalClarity and consumer resources such as ConsumerAffairs.
What’s next
The cases remain pending in Pierce County Superior Court, and prosecutors have not yet announced trial dates. How quickly things move will hinge on upcoming hearings, including any defense challenges to the surveillance footage, cell-phone location data and license-plate-reader evidence that prosecutors say tie the men to the blaze.
