Former Chinese Restaurant Owner Pleads Guilty to Arson

A businessman was sentenced to two and a half years of probation for .

Hui Zheng, 39, was ordered last month to pay $1,140 in exchange for pleading guilty to one count of arson. Prosecutors dropped the second charge of arson with intent to defraud insurance.

Both charges are Class 2 felonies, punishable by probation or three to seven years in jail.

Prosecutors alleged that Zheng, following a reported burglary at the restaurant on Dec. 29, 2011, in which part of the kitchen was burned, was told by his insurance agent that only food supplies contaminated by gasoline would be eligible for reimbursement.

Footage from a nearby Citgo gas station on Dec. 31 shows Zheng filling a white gas can that was later used to ignite the Canton Express kitchen at 11318 S. Harlem Ave., according to prosecutors.

A witness on a neighboring apartment balcony told police that Zheng took off in his car immediately after the restaurant roof exploded.

Zheng has worked at the restaurant since it opened in 2008. His name is listed as owner on the first and last applications for a business license.

His attorney, Arthur Porto, declined to answer questions about the case, including whether Zheng intentionally blew up the restaurant. Testimony previously provided in court about his effort to seek cash for damaged food supplies, coupled with the state's decision to drop the arson charge related to insurance fraud, suggests that he may have started the fire by accident.

Andy Conklin, a spokesman for the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, said he couldn't offer any details of the case.

Zheng could not be reached for an interview. If all goes well, his supervision ends in November of 2014.

Upated at 3:15 p.m.

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