More than three years after three Baltimore firefighters died battling a blaze in vacant buildings on Stricker Street, police and prosecutors have charged a man with their deaths.

The suspect, 57-year-old James Barnett, was charged in June 2023 with a series of burglaries in the Carrollton Ridge neighborhood, including the morning of the fatal fire on Jan. 24, 2022. But authorities at that time stopped short of linking him to the blaze, and that burglary case fell apart, with Barnett being acquitted.

Prosecutors say they never stopped scrutinizing evidence. Barnett is charged with second-degree arson along with three counts of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter for the deaths of Lt. Kelsey Sadler, Lt. Paul Butrim and EMT/firefighter Kenny Lacayo.

He’s also charged with reckless endangerment for creating a danger to others battling the blaze, including EMT/firefighter John McMaster, who was permanently injured while batting the fire.

Barnett was arrested Friday afternoon and ordered to be held without bail. He didn’t have an attorney listed in court records.

In an interview, prosecutors pointed to new technology and the work of experienced prosecutors who have joined the office as factors helping to push the case forward.

“This is a difficult case, but our office isn’t going to shy away from difficult cases,” State’s Attorney Ivan Bates said. “We’re going to follow the evidence and the law, and we’re going to present the best case we can. That’s what the victims and their families deserve.”

The case was among the first presented to Bates’ team when they took office in January 2023. Investigators with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives made multiple presentations to prosecutors over the years detailing the evidence.

Deputy State’s Attorney Tom Donnelly said among the factors that helped prosecutors decide there was enough evidence was the use of imaging technology “that is not necessarily new, but an application of the technology that historically hasn’t been used but [which] is growing in the fire investigation industry.”

“We know this arrest cannot erase the pain, the grief, or the losses endured by the firefighters and their families. But we hope it is a step forward,” ATF Special Agent in Charge Charles Doerrer said in a statement. “This arrest is proof that justice will not be forgotten, and that accountability will be pursued by ATF and our partners — no matter how complex the investigation, no matter how long it takes.”

In charging documents, homicide Det. Jonathan Jones wrote that investigators in March of this year used what’s called MATLAB Image Processing Toolbox to perform enhanced light source analysis on surveillance footage depicting the rear of the 200 block of South Stricker Street, where the blaze occurred.

A man who they say is Barnett spent eight minutes inside the home, the footage shows, according to police. They concluded that, while he was inside, they could see flashes of light consistent with a butane cigarette lighter.

“Based on this analysis, investigators concluded that the point of origin of the fire was in the exact same spot as where the four flashes of light were seen during Barnett’s presence in the structure,” Jones wrote.

In February and March 2022 after the fire, investigators in the neighborhood encountered Barnett, who claimed he’d lived in the Stricker Street home years prior. He said he’d been kicked out by members of a local mosque who were trying to clean up the neighborhood, according to charging documents. Barnett said he always entered through the rear but denied setting the fire.

Donnelly said Barnett is charged with second-degree “depraved heart” murder, which means a defendant is accused of grossly negligent conduct.

“We are not alleging he had a specific intent to kill anyone here, but second-degree murder does encompass that extreme disregard for human life,” he said.

Barnett has a prior record of burglary convictions.

He pleaded guilty to fourth-degree attempted burglary in 2022, receiving a three-year sentence that was half-suspended.

Before that he pleaded guilty in 2018 to second-degree burglary, receiving a sentence of eight years, almost all of which was suspended. In 2017, he received a two-year suspended sentence for fourth-degree burglary.