Investigators yesterday released photos of a suspect wanted in connection with an arson fire that burned an under-construction apartment building on the Oakland-Emeryville border last month for the second time in a year.
The five-alarm blaze started at about 5am on May 13 in a planned seven-story, 105-unit apartment building at 3800 San Pablo Avenue that had been framed out in wood.
It took days to get the fire totally under control, as it continued to smolder through the weekend. Firefighters worried that a crane at the construction site could topple, shutting down streets in the busy shopping area.
The same building burned last July in another massive fire that was also considered suspicious. Construction restarted on the project in March.
Investigators with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Alameda County Fire Department and Emeryville police announced on Thursday that both fires were intentionally set and released surveillance images of a suspect in the case.
The ATF is offering a $50,000 reward for the two fires: $25,000 for the one on July 6, and another $25,000 for the one on May 13. The developer, Holliday Development, chipped in another $25,000 reward for each fire.
The suspect was captured on video canvassing the building before entering, according to Alameda County fire officials. The photos show him wearing a jacket with a hood, carrying a backpack and riding a bicycle.
The man is the only suspect investigators have identified for at the moment, but at this point he’s not a suspect in the first blaze. Investigators plan to post flyers with his photo around the neighborhood.
As part of their investigations, ATF agents conducted more than 100 interviews and made a detailed forensic investigation of the rubble, including using accelerant-detecting dogs.
“I just ask for patience. We are going to solve this,” Emeryville Mayor Scott Donahue said. “We can’t let incidents like this to deter us from being the city that we are. We’re a city that’s growing faster than any other city in the Bay Area.”
The San Francisco Business Times reported that the fire in July was started by fireworks, but at a press conference Thursday ATF Special Agent Jill Snyder would not say whether investigators suspected fireworks started either of the blazes.
