Fort Worth man who served time for murder accused of arson, assault

A 52-year-old man who strangled a woman in 1986 and then tried to set her apartment on fire was in jail Thursday night facing new charges of assault and arson, according to officials and public records.

The roommate of Victor Charles Rosenfarb was found beaten and burned Thursday morning in his Meadowbrook-area apartment, officials said.

Rosenfarb was arrested when he returned to the scene at 11:20 a.m. Thursday, according to Fort Worth police and fire authorities.

Rosenfarb was charged with murder when he did something similar in Arlington 30 years ago, according to Tarrant County District Clerk records.

Fort Worth police said the latest victim was beaten Wednesday night in his apartment in the 4700 block of Norma Street. Neighbors heard banging sounds at 2 a.m., but didn’t think anything of it until the apartment started “smoldering” in the morning, said Fort Worth police spokeswoman Tamara Pena.

They called Fort Worth firefighters who were dispatched to the apartment at 9:55 a.m. and who “found the victim with significant injuries due to the assault and some burn injuries,” fire department spokesman Kyle Falkner said.

“The fire was pretty well out on its own,” Falkner said.

Rosenfarb was indicted for the murder of Billie Cashdam, which occurred April 11, 1986, in the 2800 block of Hedgeway Drive. He strangled her with his hands during an attempted robbery and then tried to set her building on fire, according to court records filed in Tarrant County the following day.

Rosenfarb was indicted that July and sentenced to 55 years in prison. It appears he was released on parole sometime in 2010, but prison officials said they could not confirm that until Friday morning.

His current roommate was taken first to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth and later transferred to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas. Parkland has the regional burn center.

The man told investigators that his roommate did it, according to fire officials.

Rosenfarb was being questioned by arson investigators Thursday night. He was expected to be booked into jail on suspicion of arson and aggravated assault.

This story was originally published March 10, 2016 at 8:58 PM with the headline "Fort Worth man who served time for murder accused of arson, assault."