A man is accused of setting fire to his own house in Mars last summer. But borough police said they don't have a motive.

Larry D. Stevick, 63, of Evans City, turned himself in to authorities after police charged him Tuesday with arson in connection with the July 5 fire that badly damaged his former home at 303 Garfield Ave.

Four volunteer firefighters with the Harmony Fire District were momentarily caught inside the multi-story house during the blaze around 10 p.m., investigators said, and had to be rescued.

Some time before the fire, police said, Stevick also allegedly assaulted his live-in girlfriend and kicked her dog.

District Judge Wayne Seibel arraigned Stevick on the felony arson charge. He also is charged with four counts of reckless endangerment and one count of simple assault, all misdemeanors.

Additionally, he is facing summary charges of animal cruelty and harassment.

Stevick, who was accompanied by his attorney, John Haller Jr., at the arraignment, is free on $10,000 unsecured bail. Haller declined comment about his client's charges.

Police allege that within a few hours of the fire, the defendant pushed and choked his girlfriend. She suffered minor injuries. As she was leaving the house, he is accused of kicking her dog.

Fire crews were called to the house at 10:03 p.m., and found flames and smoke coming from it, authorities said. The 911 dispatcher reported that it was unknown if anyone was inside, but neighbors advised that they had seen Stevick at the house minutes before the fire.

The four Harmony firefighters manned the “search-for-life” crew that went into the house to look for any possible victims inside.

The firefighters stated that the floor was slippery, “like ice,” according to court documents. One of the firemen fell.

During the search, police said, the four-man crew thought the floor above them had collapsed, prompting a “mayday” call at 10:35 p.m.

A rescue team of firefighters eventually helped extricate the search crew through a window. None of the firefighters was injured. It took about an hour to extinguish the blaze.

While the rescue of the fire crew was unfolding, authorities said, police and firefighters found Stevick on the ground near the back of the house.

He was “coughing, burned and covered with motor oil,” police investigator Conrad Pfeifer said in an affidavit with the criminal complaint. The defendant's hands also were bleeding.

The fire investigation turned up “oily footprints” as well as “blood smears” coming from the house to the area where authorities found Stevick, the affidavit said.

Additionally, investigators found empty gallon jugs of motor oil in the house following the fire.

Damage to the structure and contents was estimated at $250,000. According to the Butler County Assessment Office, Stevick purchased the house in November 2007.

Trooper DuWayne Baird, a state police deputy fire marshal in Butler, began his investigation July 3. Among his findings was that the fire was intentionally set with “multiple points of origins,” documents said.

Additionally, Baird determined that motor oil was intentionally poured on at least one floor and about the house.

Police said that surveillance video was obtained from multiple sources as part of the investigation. The footage allegedly showed Stevick walking in front of the house before the fire, and he appeared to be holding jugs of motor oil.

“The video shows Stevick entering the front main door of the main floor with one of these (jugs),” the affidavit said. “Stevick carried the container into the house (and) the video shows the fire flashing immediately after.”

Pfeifer said Tuesday that although there is no motive in the fire, police do not believe it was insurance fraud-related.

Stevick's preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 2 at Seibel's office in Evans City.