Ont. man who set fire, destroyed historic Orillia building, sentenced again

Brandon Costa surveillance video on January 21, 2025. (Supplied)

An Orillia-area man who started the fire that burned down an historic downtown Orillia building in January of last year has been sentenced again for causing a disturbance at an Orillia bank.

Brandon Costa, 36, will be spending another month behind bars after pleading guilty to threatening employees of the bank along Monarch Drive in November.

Costa apologized to the court for becoming frustrated when he had trouble withdrawing money on Nov. 1, 2025.

The Crown said Costa appeared to be heavily impaired by drugs at the time and had drug paraphernalia on him.

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Costa, who lives with his parents and has battled addiction, mental health struggles, and a traumatic brain injury from a car crash in 2016, had just been released from jail, where he spent 10 months.

The court heard during his first sentencing hearing in May, Costa set fire to an historic building in downtown Orillia on Jan. 21, 2025, after he was kicked out of a warming centre and sought shelter from the cold.

Costa was seen on surveillance video starting a fire in a vestibule outside a building along Peter Street that spread quickly and ultimately destroyed the building, despite efforts by fire crews to extinguish the flames. The building was deemed structurally unsafe and has to be torn down.

The fire caused about $6 million in damage and displaced all of the building’s tenants, including a fashion and comic book art studio and a salon. The building’s owner, Jeff Pitcher, said insurance did not cover all of his losses, and the city’s downtown has lost one of its oldest and most cherished buildings.

Costa, who was granted bail following the incident at the bank, also pleaded guilty to breaching conditions of his release.

The court heard Costa, who was supposed to be at home or with his father while away from their residence, was found in breach in mid-December when his GPS ankle monitor triggered a warning. Costa was arrested by police when he was found in Orillia after midnight without his father.

Costa, who has spent the last month in jail, was sentenced on Tuesday afternoon to another 33 days behind bars following a joint submission by duty counsel and the Crown that was accepted by Justice Edward Carlton.

As part of his latest sentence, Costa was also barred from returning to the Orillia bank. He will remain on probation for another two and a half years.