Suspected Serial Arsonist In Custody; Christmas Eve Arsonist Still Sought

The arson fire at Gascoigne Lumber took hours and 150 fire fighters to put out, although it continued to smolder well into the next day.

Great news off the Seattle Police Department Blotter (click here,) about the arrest of a suspect in several arson fires in Queen Anne, Ballard and South Fremont; fires set in October and November 2018.

A 38-year-old man, identified through DNA, is in custody, as of February 27^th, as suspect in a series of arson fires.

He was detained for his participation in five fires, including a kitchen fire, on Nov 8^th, at the Seattle Elks Lodge #92 near the south end of the Fremont Bridge.

He is also suspected of setting a fire that destroyed all but one building at Gascoigne Lumber on Nov 10^th. The fire filled Fremont with smoke for more than 24 hours, and shut down roads around the area while approximately 150 fire fighters fought to save surrounding properties. The lumber yard had been at that site for nearly 100 years but will now relocate to Everett, taking jobs and services with it.

This photo of someone near the arson fires in Fremont was taken from security video near the scene.

In addition, the suspect in custody has been linked to these arson fires:

On Oct 28^th – an office complex in the 200 block of Etruria St
On Nov 19^th – a gymnasium in the 1400 block of NW 52^nd St
On Nov 28^th – a restaurant in the 5400 block of Ballard Ave NW

Police estimates put the cost damages caused by these five fires at more than four and a half million dollars. They identified the suspect through DNA evidence recovered at one of the scenes, and located him in custody at the Whatcom County Jail on an unrelated case.

The office of King County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg will now explore bringing charges against the suspect.

Unfortunately, this suspect is not believed to be connected to the arson fires set in the early hours of December 24^th, 2018, in Fremont.

Please help Seattle Police identify this suspect in the recent arson fires in Fremont.

The arsonist that set more than one fire in the morning of Christmas Eve caused enough damage to temporarily shut down the businesses of Sfingiday, Habitude Fremont, Red Star Taco Bar and An Ounce of Prevention.

Sfingiday and Ounce of Prevention still remain closed two months later.

Local support of these small businesses, from donors and customers, has made it possible for them to survive their unexpected closures – and, in the case of Red Star, raising money for the employees who suddenly found themselves out of work.

Please continue this support by assisting Seattle Police in identifying the person photographed at the time of the arson – or just sharing the photos with others around Seattle who might know who the person might be.

Thank you!