Tioga County Sheriff: Nichols man indicted on arson charges

[By Matt Freeze]

OWEGO — In January, the Tioga County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest of a 34-year-old Nichols man after a county grand jury indicted him on a dozen felonies and a dozen misdemeanors following an investigation into a series of structure fires.

Benjamin B. McCluhan was charged with arson in the first degree, conspiracy in the second degree, four counts of arson in the third degree, two counts each of insurance fraud and grand larceny in the third degree, two counts of conspiracy in the third degree, four counts of criminal solicitation in the fourth degree, reckless endangerment in the second degree, five counts of endangering the welfare of a child, and two counts of making a punishable false written statement.

The sheriff’s office said the charges stem from a 12-month investigation conducted by the Tioga County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division, the Tioga County Fire Investigation Team, the New York State Office of Fire Prevention and Control, and the New York State Police following several suspicious structure fires that occurred in November and December of 2024 in the Town of Berkshire, N.Y.

McCluhan was taken into custody on Dec. 1 by the Chambers County Sheriff’s Office in Alabama as a fugitive from justice and was later transported to New York State by the U.S. Marshals Service.

On Jan. 22, McCluhan was arraigned on the indictment in Tioga County Court, where bail was set at $30,000 cash, $60,000 bond, or $100,000 bond guaranteed by a third party.