Shaun Bowen

Syracuse, NY -- Arson murderer Shaun Bowen told a jury this morning that he knew how a North Side boarding house burned down in May 2015: the walls and floor were doused with gasoline and a propane tank was put in the oven.

But Bowen insisted that he didn't do it: he was eating pork chops and drinking beer outside when the fire started.

A jury quickly found him guilty of arson and murder anyway.

Bowen was found guilty of murder because resident Richard Fabrizio, 49, was killed in the blaze.

The jury got the case Thursday afternoon and had a verdict by 4:30 p.m.

Bowen was on parole after being convicted of axing another man to death in 1992 over cheap vodka.

In this case, he told detectives that he regretted someone else lost their life due to his drinking, getting high, attitude and anger. (Bowen's statement was edited in court because the jury was not allowed to hear evidence of Bowen's prior murder.)

"I just wanted to prank them, like gig them," Bowen mumbled during a recorded police interview, his head buried in his hands.

But Bowen never directly admitted guilt.

Thursday morning, Bowen took the witness stand in his own defense and blamed a drug dealer he only knew as "Black" for the arson. He claimed "Black" came in with a gas can and Bowen watched him splash the floor and the walls, then put a propane tank in the oven and fiddle with the knobs.

Bowen said he went outside to a stump to eat pork chops and drink beer before the place went up in flames, killing Fabrizio.

The jury clearly didn't believe Bowen's story. It contradicted previous versions that Bowen had given, in which, among other things, he told police to investigate the landlord and other residents.

Bowen said today that he didn't say anything about watching the drug dealer prepare the arson because he was afraid of retribution.

Early on during his cross-examination in court, prosecutor Robert Moran asked Bowen whether he was an addict. Bowen said yes. He admitted drinking and doing crack the night before the fatal fire.

He'd been to halfway houses and rehab. But never group counseling sessions, Bowen testified.

Why not? Because addicts lie to other addicts, themselves and others to justify what they've done, Bowen explained.

"And you're an addict, correct?" Moran asked him.

"Correct," Bowen replied.

Bowen faces 25 years to life in prison when sentenced at a later date. He remains in jail.