A 43-year-old Schenectady man has been convicted of third-degree arson for setting fire to a vehicle at a used car lot on State Street last year, with a sentence that could keep him in state prison for well over a decade. Aundrea Blunt was found guilty in connection with the May 2025 blaze at Sierra Motors, which damaged at least two vehicles but left no one hurt.
Fire Broke Out Overnight at the Car Lot
According to NEWS10 ABC, Schenectady firefighters responded to a building on the 1300 block of State Street after reports of a car fire, arriving at about 1:15 a.m. on May 6, 2025. Crews found several vehicles burning within the used car business and worked to knock the flames down. The Daily Gazette, however, reported that firefighters were called to Sierra Motors at 1302 State St. at about 1:30 a.m., a discrepancy in the timeline that has never been fully reconciled between the two accounts.
The Daily Gazette reported that firefighters contained the blaze to the vehicle where it started and one neighboring vehicle, and that no injuries were reported. Court-filed allegations state that Blunt held an open flame to combustibles inside a vehicle at the car lot, causing it to ignite, per the same account from the Daily Gazette.
Detectives Zeroed In On a Suspect
Detectives determined that the blaze had been set intentionally, and investigators soon identified Blunt as a suspect in the incident. He was taken into custody on May 7, 2025, and was arrested that May on charges tied to the fire. Blunt was subsequently charged with one count of third-degree arson, a felony, the news organization's report states.
Blunt was convicted during court proceedings, and the Schenectady Fire Department announced the guilty verdict, confirming both his conviction and his sentence. He was sentenced to seven and a half to 13 years in state prison, according to the Schenectady Fire Department's account relayed by NEWS10 ABC.
The Charge Against Blunt
Blunt was convicted of third-degree arson.
A Separate Arson Case in Niskayuna
Blunt's case isn't the only recent arson conviction in the area. In Niskayuna, a jury found 54-year-old Michael Indarshan guilty of third-degree arson on September 9, 2026, for intentionally damaging his family's home, according to CBS6 Albany. That December 2023 fire caused both floors of the house to collapse, resulting in a total loss of the home, and investigators reported that lab analysis confirmed an accelerant in material recovered from the basement venting. Indarshan is scheduled to be sentenced on November 18, 2026, and faces 5 to 15 years' incarceration, the station reports.
