Family worried after truck torched in front of their home

PASADENA, TX (KTRK) -- A Pasadena family is living in fear and they say it all started with their teenager getting on Instagram.

That family told investigators that for more than a month they've been dealing with threats from a man who contacted their young daughter online. They say it just got more serious with a fire just steps away from their home.

The road is still charred and the street signs are ruined. It's all because a family on Shanna Street in Pasadena says someone torched a 2012 Yukon Denali parked in their driveway last Wednesday.

Pasadena Fire Marshal David Brannon said, "We have an obvious fire of a truck where it was intentionally set."

Brannon said his investigators are looking into the arson. The victims tell me they've been living in fear since the early morning fire last week. Investigators say the impact caused the truck's tires to blow and drive shaft to explode.

"We do have some persons of interest that we are looking at right now," Brannon said. "But it is still under investigation."

The victims told investigators they believe the fire is linked to ongoing threats they've been getting since October. The homeowner says that's when his 14-year-old daughter was contacted by a guy on an online photo-sharing site called Instagram. The dad says he called police when he learned that guy speaking with his daughter was a 40-year-old man, not a 14-year-old boy like he'd allegedly indicated.

"We're just really reaching out to anybody that may have any answers to this, any information leading to it," Brannon said.

Pasadena police are looking into the initial online complaints and the fire marshal says his investigators are also examining evidence to see if this act of arson could possibly be connected to the ongoing investigation.

The truck that burned is valued at $60,000. Investigators are urging anyone with information about the fire to call the Pasadena Fire Marshal's arson investigators at 713-475-5556.

This story was brought to you through our partnership with Houston Community Newspapers. You can read more about it in the Pasadena Citizen.

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