Stripper Arrested In West Hollywood Arson Case
WEST HOLLYWOOD (CBS) — A West Hollywood stripper Tuesday night faced charges of attempted murder for allegedly setting fire to a West Hollywood apartment complex.
Samantha Scarano, 25, was arrested by Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies Monday.
Scarano was accused of setting two units on fire at the Sunset Lanai apartments in the early morning hours of March 4.
"I was shocked, you know, I couldn't believe it," said Johnny, a DJ at The Body Shop where Scarano danced.
"She has always been a real sweet girl. And I couldn't see really her doing that, honestly," he said.
Johnny, who did not want us to use his last name, said he was taking a break outside Monday when authorities took 25-year-old Samantha Scarano into custody.
"She showed up for work, got dressed and I was like, 'What are you doing, aren't you at large, girl? What are you doing here?' She was like, 'No, I'm not wanted by police,'" Johnny said.
But she was. Authorities said earlier this month, she broke a window and tossed a burning can of charcoal fluid into the top floor of a West Hollywood apartment building.
Deputies said that Scarano's target was her ex-roommate, who used to also work as a dancer at The Body Shop where the two met.
"They had been having a fight for a while I guess [over ] dancer drama," he said.
Authorities said Scarano torched her ex-roommate's apartment because of a dispute.
Johnny told us what Scarano said when he asked her if she did it.
"I know for sure like it wasn't me. And then she kind of made a joke, 'Well, maybe it was and ha-ha-ha," he said.
Scarano's family has seen its share of trouble; three years ago Scarano's brother was the prime suspect in his mother's murder, which happened just blocks away.
The victim had been brutally stabbed in her Hollywood home.
No one was injured in the fire at the apartment complex.
Scarano was being held on a $1.25 million bail.
