Man, 64, charged with arson after December fire destroyed eastern Manitoba hotel

The owner of an eastern Manitoba hotel that was deliberately set on fire last December feels a sense of comfort knowing an arrest has been made in connection with the arson.

Mounties arrested Pelle Lambiase, 64, on Saturday, and charged him with one count of arson stemming from an early-morning fire on Dec. 8 that engulfed the Rennie Hotel, Lac du Bonnet RCMP said Monday in a news release.

The provincial Office of the Fire Commissioner later confirmed the fire was deliberately set.

"I feel a peace of mind because at least the person was caught," hotel owner Uma Bilimoria said Monday.

"I'm just happy to know about that because until now … we don't know who is it?" she said. "We also never thought that he would be doing this to us, but right now at least we have a name, who has done it."

Bilimoria, who ran the hotel with her husband, said she wasn't familiar with the name of the accused. She said she knew him as "Joe," an operator of Mama Joe's restaurant in Rennie.

She admitted it was "a very big surprise" when RCMP called to tell her who they arrested following what's been a very trying time for her.

"It really hurt a lot," Bilimoria said of her feelings in the aftermath of the fire.

She isn't the only area resident stunned by Lambiase's arrest.

'It was shocking,' councillor says of arrest

Rural municipality of Reynolds Coun. Blaine Webster also knew the accused as one of the operators of Mama Joe's.

Webster said Mama Joe's was very popular this past summer and offered excellent food.

"He did very well. I don't think they were expecting to be as crazy as they were," Webster said.

But he was taken aback when he heard the news that "Joe" had been charged with arson.

"It was shocking, frustrating. A lot of anger," Webster said.

"I think the whole town was just shocked on who it was."

Rennie is in the Whiteshell region, about 110 kilometres east of Winnipeg.

Webster told CBC News in December that the hotel, which was originally built in 1939, had been closed for two months prior to the fire. The town is now without a key landmark that often served as a meeting spot, especially in the summer months, he said.

"Losing the hotel has devastated the town, and hopefully one day we can find somebody out there that's willing to invest in the town and get it back up and running," Webster said.

Lambiase was released following his arrest. He has a court appearance scheduled for May 1 in Beausejour, Man.