BREMERTON, Wash. — Bremerton police have arrested a 45-year-old Gig Harbor man who they say was a person of interest in a Monday arson.
Police said the man called detectives and later agreed to come to the police station for an interview. At the end of the interview, the man was arrested and booked into the Kitsap County Jail for the crimes of burglary, theft of a firearm and arson.
The Bremerton Police Department said it is waiting to release the suspect's name pending the Kitsap County Prosecuting Attorney's Office charging decision.
Our earlier report from Jan. 2, 2018:
Bremerton police are asking the public's help in identifying a man who they say is a person of interest in an arson on Monday.
The fire happened Monday at about 2:15 a.m. Bremerton firefighters responded to a report of a fire at the Spyglass Hill Apartments in the 600 block of Highland Ave.
The building was evacuated, and hundreds were forced outside in the cold according to Fire Marshals who are now investigating the incident as arson.
Bremerton Deputy Fire Marshal Jeff Prichard said the building’s sprinkler system managed to extinguish the fire. He also said the building is only a few blocks from the firehouse on Park Ave so the response went relatively smoothly.
“We identified a person that didn't belong in the building didn't know who he was so he's a person of interest we want to find this guy and chat with him.”
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Bremerton Police shared the man’s photo on social media, and even said they believed they knew who he was.
Fire investigators wouldn't identify him by name but said the surveillance cameras at the apartment complex helped them start the arson investigation.
Resident Andrew Feliciano said that both he and his dog Roosevelt escaped when the fire broke out. They live adjacent to the unit where the fire happened. He was surprised that authorities said a man who didn’t live there managed to get in, “this place is like Fort Knox, it’s very secure. I'm not sure how that guy got in.”
Fire investigators said nobody was hurt in the fire, and it didn’t spread to any other buildings, in fact there never appeared to be a danger of that happening. They said roughly a dozen residents may have been displaced by the fire.
Anyone with information is asked to call detectives at 360-473-5228.