A jury in Orange County Court has convicted a Newburgh man in the 2017 arson fire that burned down Andiamo’s Restaurant, which had been located at 5025 Route 9W in the Town of Newburgh. The jury found that he conspired with a relative to set the fire in order to collect insurance money.
Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler reported that Zef Gjurashaj, age 60, was convicted of arson, conspiracy, reckless endangerment, insurance fraud and tax fraud charges. Prior to the trial, Gjurashaj’s co-defendant, Marina Gjurashaj, age 38 of Yonkers, who is the wife of his nephew, entered guilty pleas to lesser charges. She testified against him during the trial.
The fire occurred on Sept. 6, 2017. The district attorney had alleged that Zev Gjurashaj, who operated the restaurant business, knew that it was in financial trouble and decided to burn it for insurance purposes. It was charged that he instructed Marina Gjurashaj on how to start the fire and he removed a plug from a propane line in the kitchen. Tampering with the line allowed for the free flow of propane gas into the room once the propane valve was turned on. The investigation into the fire revealed that the woman sprayed a flammable liquid onto the floor of the kitchen, opened the propane valve and lit the liquid as instructed. An intense fire broke out.
District Attorney Hoovler said the investigation also revealed that Zef Gjurashaj under-reported cash income from the restaurant when submitting required New York State tax filings.
“Arson for profit is, by its nature, an incredibly challenging crime to prosecute because of the complexity of the evidence as well as because, as in this case, the perpetrator often intentionally attempts to destroy any link between themselves and the crime,” Hoovler said. “This fire, which was set solely for the financial gain of the defendant, created an extremely dangerous situation for first responders who valiantly fought the fire. The utter disregard for human life and property exhibited in this case is appalling.”
Zev Gjurashaj is due to be sentenced on Dec. 19. He faces a possible sentence of 25 years to life in state prison.
