Seattle Police arrested a 55-year-old suspect after he reportedly set fire to several cars in the 2500 block of 24th Avenue West on Monday night.
According to Officer Lauren Lovanhill in the SPD Blotter, officers responding to a report of a family disturbance just after 8:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 21, found the suspect in the street holding a large object and pouring liquid on a truck. Despite seeing the officers, the suspect proceeded to light the liquid on fire and continued to pour liquid on the flames. The suspect then threw an object at an officer.
The fire ultimately caught three other vehicles on fire, including an SPD patrol vehicle. Officers put out most of the flames with their in-car fire extinguishers.
The suspect ran from the scene with police in pursuit, but they couldn’t catch him.
A BNSF Railway employee saw a man run across the train tracks toward the golf course and called 911 to report it. With information matching the suspect, officers surrounded a thicket of blackberry bushes leading up to the golf course, where they found him. The suspect surrendered and emerged from the bushes.
Seattle Fire Department treated the suspect for minor scrapes across a large portion of his body, made worse when he removed his shirt.
The suspect was booked into King County Jail for arson and assault.