BIDDEFORD — A Biddeford man was arrested this morning in connection with a September fire that left two men dead at 35 Main St.

Dylan Lee Collins, 18, of Center Street, was charged with two counts of murder and one count of arson in connection with a fire that took place Sept. 18, according to Maine State Police spokesman Steve McCausland.

If convicted, he could face a sentence of up to life in prison.

Collins will make his first court appearance today at York County Superior Court in Alfred.

Collins is charged with setting a fire at a multi-family unit that led to the deaths of James Ford, 21, and Michael Moore, 23. The two roommates died as a result of smoke inhalation, according to the Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Collins was at work Wednesday, at the amusement center Monkey Trunks on Cascade Road in Saco, when he was taken into custody, according to McCausland.

He was brought for observation to Southern Maine Health Care in Biddeford, where he stayed Wednesday and Thursday nights.

While there, Collins was interviewed by state police, with assistance from the Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office.

Early this morning, he was arrested and transported to York County Jail in Alfred. As of press time, Collins was being held without bail.

The Main Street fire was reported at around 3:30 a.m. on Sept. 18, according to Fire Marshal Investigator Sgt. Joel Davis.

A passerby first reported the fire.

A police officer, who was the first responder, pulled a fire alarm at the building, which didn’t work. He then pulled a second alarm to alert the fire department.

The fire started in the rear stairwell, according to investigators.

It appeared that some of the units in the three-story, 16-unit building didn’t have a second means of egress, as required by state law, said Davis.

In addition, he said, the smoke detector in the third-floor attic, where firefighters found Moore and Ford sleeping, didn’t appear to be working.

Both Ford and Moore were unconscious when responders carried them from their bedroom in the building. They were critically injured when they were brought to Maine Medical Center in Portland.

Six others suffered from minor smoke inhalation as a result of the blaze. They were taken to hospitals in Biddeford and Portland, treated and released the day of the fire, according to investigators.

Twenty-five residents in the building were displaced as a result of the fire.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.