LEWISTON – Two men and a teenager set fire to Lisbon Street buildings as a distraction after they tried to steal copper from another downtown building, according to a police affidavit.

Brothers Timothy A. Giggey, 27, of Auburn and Douglass N. Hersom, 26, of Lewiston, and neighbor Troy Littlefield, 17, of Lewiston have been charged with arson, a Class A felony.

District Court Judge John Beliveau on Tuesday ordered Giggey and Hersom held on $100,000 cash bail pending a March 1 indictment hearing in Androscoggin County Superior Court in Auburn. They face charges of arson and burglary in the Dec. 19 fire that destroyed four Lisbon Street buildings.

According to an affidavit filed in Lewiston District Court, Littlefield bragged of his involvement in the blaze last Tuesday at the Cressey, Kora and Greely buildings on Lisbon Street. The fire burned overnight, ruining the buildings and the nearby New England Furniture building. The four structures sustained so much damage they had to be demolished.

According to the affidavit, Littlefield confessed his role and implicated the two men.

Hersom and Littlefield allegedly spent part of Dec. 19 in Hersom’s apartment, smoking “a lot” of marijuana and playing video games, according to the affidavit. Littlefield returned to his apartment about 8:30 p.m., but Hersom later invited him out for a walk.

Hersom allegedly told Littlefield about a plan to steal copper from a Lisbon Street building that was being renovated. They met Giggey at the New Auburn Dunkin’ Donuts after 9:45 p.m. and walked back to Lewiston.

The affidavit says the three feared they had set off a burglar alarm in one building and allegedly set the fires in the Greely building, which formerly housed Marco’s Restaurant, as a diversion.

Police arrested Hersom and Giggey on Dec. 21. Hersom refused to speak to investigators, but Giggey confirmed much of Littlefield’s story, according to the affidavit.

In setting the high bails for Giggey and Hersom on Tuesday, Judge Beliveau cited their extensive criminal records. Giggey has nine convictions, including two felonies; Hersom has 11 convictions, five of them felonies. Both have been convicted of burglary and burglary of a motor vehicle. Giggey’s other convictions include criminal mischief and violation of a protection from harassment order.

Beliveau returned Littlefield to the Long Creek juvenile facility in South Portland pending evaluations of his psychological well-being and the condition of his residence.