Deputies: Monroe man set fire to his own truck

Published 1:30 am Monday, March 11, 2019

MONROE — It wasn’t your typical vehicle fire.

For one thing, deputies with the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office believe a Monroe-area man set fire to his own truck.

With it ablaze and patrol cars on scene, the man allegedly hoofed it into the brush.

Deputies believe he wasn’t fleeing to safety from the fire, but rather was trying to get away.

His freedom didn’t last long. The man, 33, was subdued after running into thick brambles in the dark.

While trying to fight off handcuffs several times, he ended up with a bloody nose, according to court papers. Eventually, he was strapped to a gurney and taken to a hospital and later jail. He was arrested for investigation of reckless burning, obstructing a law enforcement officer and resisting arrest.

The incident occurred Wednesday in the early morning.

Firefighters and deputies were called to a property off Roosevelt Road.

The suspect allegedly threw objects and gasoline into the fire, which began to spread through some tall grass toward his home where a roommate was inside.

“The fire easily could have spread into the vegetation causing danger to the surrounding neighbors’ structures,” according to the arrest report.

The deputy said that the man’s behavior changed several times after he was detained. One moment, he would be screaming and howling and the next docile and passive before thrashing and screaming again.

The Washington State Patrol reported “gas cans all over the place and that the fire appeared to be deliberately set,” according to the court papers.

The suspect was released from jail the next day, pending a charging decision.

Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.