An 18-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to arson and murder charges in connection with a fatal fire in Fairbanks.
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports (http://is.gd/NzMZSb) Conar Lee Groppel entered his plea Tuesday in Fairbanks Superior Court.
He was indicted by a grand jury for intentionally starting a fire or explosion in late January at an apartment complex on Geraghty Street. The fire killed two people, 50-year-old Jane Connolly and 39-year-old Kristina Pence. It also displaced another 50 residents.
Groppel also was injured in the fire, and spent time at a Seattle burn hospital.
Judge Bethany Harbison determined he met the financial requirements for a court-appointed attorney. An attorney in court for another case helped him enter his not guilty plea.
Trial was scheduled for late September.
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Information from: Fairbanks (Alaska) Daily News-Miner, http://www.newsminer.com
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