Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
It's been nearly 15 years since Jen Pilato and her sister Angel Pilato-Shuman lost three loved ones in a house fire.
Their father, Carmen.
"My dad was amazing," said Jen. "He was everybody's best friend."
Their 12-year-old adopted brother, Joshua.
"He had a lot of friends, boys and girls," Jen said. "All the girls thought he was dreamy."
And their 16-year-old adopted brother, Peter.
"His biggest thing that he always said to me was, ‘When I grow up, I want a wife and I want kids. I want to have a family," Angel said.
The family's Webster home was set on fire early Dec. 7, 2011 by their adopted brother Michael, who was 15 years old at the time.
"We got a phone call at like 1 in the morning that said, 'There's a fire, Dad and the boys are missing, you gotta hurry up and get over here,'" Jen said.
When she arrived, she said, there were so many first responders, it looked like it was daylight.
"He poured gasoline through everything, and he took his hands and rubbed the gasoline on the walls, going up and down the stairs," Jen said.
"He had a tissue and, before he walked out the door, he lit the tissue and dropped it," she added.
BACKGROUND: Pilato guilty on all charges | Inside the mind of a teenage killer | Pilato's mother committed to her son
In an interview Aug. 24, 2012, Michael was asked by a forensic psychiatrist why he set the fire.
"Probably just all the anger, all the emotion built up, that was my way of releasing it," he said.
Michael was convicted and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. Now 30, he's set to go in front of a parole board this week seeking his release, according to the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
The sisters said they recently received a letter from Michael.
"He was hoping that we would feel something for him, and he has not said this was the first letter of any kind of apology," Angel said. "And believe me, it was no apology."
In the letter, the sisters said, Michael explained part of the reason he set the fire is because he wanted to be with his birth mother.
"He says because they wouldn't let him be with his mom, who was not in good shape to be a parent, that's why he was so angry," Angel said.
READ MORE: 13wham.com/news/local/michael-pilato-15-year-old-who-killed-3-family-members-in-2011-webster-fire-murder-set-for-parole-hearing-new-york-state-prison
_______________
Stay up to date with our social media:
13 WHAM on Facebook: facebook.com/13WHAM
13 WHAM on Twitter: twitter.com/13WHAM
13WHAM on Instagram: instagram.com/13whamtv/?hl=en
13WHAM on TikTok: tiktok.com/@13wham?lang=en
13 WHAM Daily Local News Digest: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuTJB6tta5ar3Fu5CumAvlvVunEP6bc9A
For more information, visit 13wham.com
Have a news tip? Send it directly to us:
Email us: news@13wham.com
Call the Newsroom: (585) 334-8700
WHAM is a NY based station and a ABC Television affiliate owned and operated by Deerfield Media, Inc and receives certain services from an affiliation of Sinclair Broadcast Group. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country today.
#13WHAM #News #Rochester #NewYork
It's been nearly 15 years since Jen Pilato and her sister Angel Pilato-Shuman lost three loved ones in a house fire.
Their father, Carmen.
"My dad was amazing," said Jen. "He was everybody's best friend."
Their 12-year-old adopted brother, Joshua.
"He had a lot of friends, boys and girls," Jen said. "All the girls thought he was dreamy."
And their 16-year-old adopted brother, Peter.
"His biggest thing that he always said to me was, ‘When I grow up, I want a wife and I want kids. I want to have a family," Angel said.
The family's Webster home was set on fire early Dec. 7, 2011 by their adopted brother Michael, who was 15 years old at the time.
"We got a phone call at like 1 in the morning that said, 'There's a fire, Dad and the boys are missing, you gotta hurry up and get over here,'" Jen said.
When she arrived, she said, there were so many first responders, it looked like it was daylight.
"He poured gasoline through everything, and he took his hands and rubbed the gasoline on the walls, going up and down the stairs," Jen said.
"He had a tissue and, before he walked out the door, he lit the tissue and dropped it," she added.
BACKGROUND: Pilato guilty on all charges | Inside the mind of a teenage killer | Pilato's mother committed to her son
In an interview Aug. 24, 2012, Michael was asked by a forensic psychiatrist why he set the fire.
"Probably just all the anger, all the emotion built up, that was my way of releasing it," he said.
Michael was convicted and sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. Now 30, he's set to go in front of a parole board this week seeking his release, according to the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.
The sisters said they recently received a letter from Michael.
"He was hoping that we would feel something for him, and he has not said this was the first letter of any kind of apology," Angel said. "And believe me, it was no apology."
In the letter, the sisters said, Michael explained part of the reason he set the fire is because he wanted to be with his birth mother.
"He says because they wouldn't let him be with his mom, who was not in good shape to be a parent, that's why he was so angry," Angel said.
READ MORE: 13wham.com/news/local/michael-pilato-15-year-old-who-killed-3-family-members-in-2011-webster-fire-murder-set-for-parole-hearing-new-york-state-prison
_______________
Stay up to date with our social media:
13 WHAM on Facebook: facebook.com/13WHAM
13 WHAM on Twitter: twitter.com/13WHAM
13WHAM on Instagram: instagram.com/13whamtv/?hl=en
13WHAM on TikTok: tiktok.com/@13wham?lang=en
13 WHAM Daily Local News Digest: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuTJB6tta5ar3Fu5CumAvlvVunEP6bc9A
For more information, visit 13wham.com
Have a news tip? Send it directly to us:
Email us: news@13wham.com
Call the Newsroom: (585) 334-8700
WHAM is a NY based station and a ABC Television affiliate owned and operated by Deerfield Media, Inc and receives certain services from an affiliation of Sinclair Broadcast Group. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country today.
#13WHAM #News #Rochester #NewYork
