A New York man was sentenced to four and a half to nine years in state prison after he pleaded guilty to setting fire to a Lancaster Township apartment complex that left multiple residents displaced.

Judge Jeffrey Conrad sentenced Husani A. Laviscount after he pleaded guilty Oct. 1 to single count each of arson, burglary, risking catastrophe and criminal mischief as well as eight counts of recklessly endangering another person.

Laviscount, 38, broke into a unit in the Kensington Club apartment complex in the 600 block of Wyncroft Lane and set the fire in April 2021. 

After starting the blaze Laviscount drove back to his Queens residence, where he arrived the following morning. Laviscount remained a fugitive until his arrest in New York City in 2025.

As part of his sentence Laviscount must pay more than $106,000 restitution to Kensington Club as compensation for repairs required as a result of the fire.

Firefighters who responded to the scene were able to successfully extinguish the blaze, but not before the flames damaged most of the interior of the two-story apartment and spread to five other units. 

Eight people were inside the affected apartments when the fire began, though none were injured. 

A subsequent investigation which involved a Pennsylvania State Police fire marshal and a certified accelerant K9 identified six different locations where fires were set inside the apartment, including a sofa and a bed, as well as the presence of an ignitable liquid. Investigators also found damage to the apartment unit’s door which indicated it had been kicked in. 

Phone records and surveillance videos enabled investigators to track Laviscount from his New York City residence to the location of the fire and back. 

Assistant District Attorney Mark Fetterman prosecuted the case.

Manheim Township Police Det. Anthony Lombardo filed the charges.