New Berlin park fires, man charged with arson

NEW BERLIN, Wis. - A New Berlin man accused of setting fires at Biwer Park on Friday was trying to get social media "attention," according to prosecutors.

Charges filed

In court:

The Waukesha County District Attorney's Office charged 19-year-old Braddock Sherwood with arson, criminal damage to property and making Molotov cocktails.

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Sherwood appeared in court hours after the fires, and a court commissioner ordered that he stay away from Biwer Park and not possess or consume any alcohol or controlled substances as conditions of his $15,000 bond. 

Braddock Sherwood

Biwer Park fire

The backstory:

New Berlin police were called to Biwer Park at around 4:40 a.m. on Friday, May 29. Fire destroyed a merry-go-round at the playground and caused minor damage to the basketball court., and court filings said the cost of removing and replacing the merry-go-round is estimated at more than $2,500.

Dig deeper:

A criminal complaint said doorbell camera footage from the area showed only one person in the park between 3 a.m. and the time police were called about the fire. That person was identified as Sherwood.

The video showed Sherwood walking to and from a series of individual fires and explosions, taking videos and photographs on his cellphone, the complaint said. Once the fire became too large, he was seen running with a bucket of water and trying to put it out.

Fires for ‘attention’

What they're saying:

Sherwood walked to the park and spoke to officers as they were collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses, the complaint said, and initially claimed he was asleep but had seen someone in the park with a gas can. Police confronted him with the video, but he continued to deny starting the fire and said he tried to put it out.

Prosecutors said, once Sherwood was arrested, he ultimately admitted to lighting one Molotov cocktail on the merry-go-round and three others on the basketball court. He said he didn't think the fires would get so big.

Further, the complaint said Sherwood told police that he was on FaceTime with friends and "wanted attention." He also claimed he planned to post a series of "Jackass" videos "on social media for attention."