HERNANDO COUNTY, Fla. — A Spring Hill man was sentenced to 10 years in state prison Tuesday after being found guilty of setting a deputy's patrol SUV on fire back in early December.
Court records say Anthony Tarduno, 48, was found guilty of two charges of second-degree arson. He will serve both sentences concurrently.
Tarduno confessed to setting a parked deputy's patrol SUV on fire on Dec. 8 because "he was 'intoxicated' and when he gets 'drunk' he does 'stupid things,'" the Hernando County Sheriff's Office wrote in a statement.
He told detectives that he came back to the scene to confess because he "felt bad."
"Tarduno went on to tell detectives he had been drinking at a bar on Northcliffe Boulevard," the sheriff's statement said.
"He left the bar on foot just before 4:30 p.m. While walking, Tarduno noticed the patrol vehicle and decided he'd like to set it on fire. He went to a nearby dumpster and grabbed a bag of garbage. Tarduno then placed the bag under the patrol vehicle and used a lighter to set it ablaze."
Deputies said Tarduno went back to the bar after setting the fire. However, after several minutes he returned to confess, according to the agency.
The county said it began its investigation after a vehicle fire was called in just before 5 p.m. on Dec. 8. Callers reported the HCSO patrol vehicle was parked at an apartment complex in the area of Northcliffe Boulevard and Portillo Road in Spring Hill.
During their investigation, detectives say severe damage was found around the rear passenger portion of the SUV and near the gas tank. Detectives also noted that there was trash and other items found under the gas tank, near the passenger wheel.
Detectives say the 48-year-old was cooperative with the investigation telling investigators that he was a "professional arsonist" and even said that the patrol SUV was not targeted and "any car that had been parked there would have been set on fire."
Tarduno will serve his sentence in the state prison.