Investigators say Arlington house fire was arson
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, December 13, 2016
ARLINGTON — Investigators say a house fire north of Arlington on Halloween was an arson.
The case remains unsolved, and a $10,000 reward is available for information leading to an arrest and conviction, said Gary Bontrager, a senior fire inspector with the Snohomish County Fire Marshal’s Office.
The flames were reported about 4:45 p.m. Oct. 31. The house at 1723 Stanwood-Bryant Road was severely damaged, and the roof collapsed.
The insurance company still is working on the damage total, which could be up to $250,000, Bontrager said. The single-story house with a daylight basement dates back to 1959 and sits on nearly 10 acres, according to public records. The house has about 3,000 square feet.
The owners have a mailing address in Texas. They were renting to tenants, who were evicted not long before the fire, Bontrager said. The tenants had quit paying their rent. The homeowner was working on the property days before the fire, trying to get it back to “livable conditions,” Bontrager said.
The house also had been vandalized multiple times before the fire, including the windows being broken out and repeated damage to the driveway gate.
The fire apparently was set to a couch and a desk in the living room.
The former tenants have not been located. They may have moved out of the area in a mobile home, Bontrager said.
Anyone with information is asked to call the fire marshal’s office at 425-388-3557. Tips also can be provided to the Arson Alarm Hotline at 1-800-55-ARSON.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @rikkiking.
