Arrest made in 2017 Bonita Springs house fire, homicide

A man was arrested Wednesday in connection with the October death of Sarah Nicholson, according to the Lee County Sheriff’s Department.

Cristian Dilan, 20, is facing charges including armed burglary of a dwelling, robbery and accessory after the fact to second-degree murder, according to LCSO.

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Sarah Nicholson, 34, was found dead just before 6 a.m. after a fire at her home in Bonita Springs on October 27, 2017.

“Both Sheriff Scott and I are so grateful for the unrelenting efforts made by our Major Crimes Unit,” said Undersheriff Carmine Marceno.  “Victims and their families deserve this type of effort and, regardless of the work required and the resources needed, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office will work relentlessly to ensure that justice is served and violent offenders are removed from the streets of Lee County.”

Jami Patel, Nicholson’s best friend, said she’s “glad they caught somebody.”

The attorney for the state said Dilan didn’t murder Nicholson, and at least two other suspects are still at large.

“I know that there are multiple people involved,” Patel said. “A — because the evidence speaks to that, and B — because I was with her in the last week of her life.”J

Patel told WINK News she believes those suspects were Nicholson’s former houseguests, who the 34-year-old tried to kick out.

“She was definitely going to ask them to leave her home, as they were staying with her,” Patel said. “And she was afraid something bad might happen once she asked them to do that.”

Now she says she’s cautiously waiting for those involved in her best friend’s killing to be brought to justice.

“I met the people that I’m sure are going to be arrested in the next few days. “Unsavory” is the word I would use to describe them,” Patel said. “But Sarah was a trusting person and a helpful person. And she was taken advantage of.”

Dilan is in the Lee County Jail on a $135,000 bail. The attorney for the state did not give the names of the two other suspects.

The investigation remains active and additional leads are being pursued, according to the sheriff’s office.

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