A surveillance camera in Kensington captured a man dousing a parked SUV in flames early Friday morning before he calmly pedaled away on a bicycle, and now Philadelphia police want help identifying him. The fire broke out around 1:11 a.m. on the 2500 block of Trenton Avenue, torching a 2020 black Toyota RAV4 parked on the street. No one was hurt.
Investigators released footage showing the suspect setting the SUV ablaze before fleeing the scene on the bicycle, according to 6abc. Police described him as a man wearing a white bucket hat and a tan jacket. Anyone with information is asked to call 215-686-TIPS.
A Second Fire Just Days Earlier
Detectives are now trying to determine whether Friday's fire is linked to another vehicle arson reported just days earlier, on October 26, around 3:15 a.m. on the 1900 block of East Hazzard Street. In that incident, the station's report notes, a 29-year-old man told police he saw a suspect open the gas cap of his 2019 Dodge Charger and place an object inside the fuel tank moments before it caught fire. That suspect was described as wearing all gray clothing, a markedly different look from the bucket-hatted man caught on camera Friday. As with the Trenton Avenue fire, no injuries were reported in the East Hazzard Street blaze.
Kensington's Arson Problem Runs Deep
Kensington's Arson Problem Runs Deep The two fires fit into a pattern that has plagued the neighborhood for years. Kensington has seen arson fires over the years. Philadelphia logged 703 reported arsons in 2023, the highest total the city had seen since at least 2006, and by late March 2024 the city was already reporting 159 arsons for the year, 20 percent more than the same stretch in 2023. Deputy Fire Marshal Chris Beale told the paper that more than a third of the 1,800 fires investigated by the city's arson unit in 2023 were determined to have been intentionally set.
Vehicle fires in particular have become a recurring nightmare for Kensington residents. A previous string of cases reported by 6abc described several arsons happening in the neighborhood during early-morning hours within a single week, all within a block of one another, including a neighbor's 2017 Ford C-Max Hybrid that exploded into flames around 3 a.m. on Martha Street and Melissa McDermott's 2018 Subaru, which was also torched nearby. A separate arson investigation documented a 2016 Toyota Camry that burned around 2:30 a.m. on the 2500 block of East Firth Street, a fire a marshal later determined was intentionally set.
Other Recent Fires in the Area
Arson has also hit commercial properties in the district. The Philadelphia Police Department says that on October 1, around 6:30 a.m., a fire was reported at a commercial property on the 1900 block of Ringgold Street, where three unknown people were recorded damaging an ATM and setting a fire inside the store. No arrest has been announced in that case, and police have not said whether it is connected to the vehicle fires on Trenton Avenue or East Hazzard Street.
For now, investigators are still working to confirm whether Friday's fire and the October 26 incident are tied to the same person or persons, and no suspect has been identified or taken into custody in either case. Residents who may have seen the man in the bucket hat, or who have any other information about the fires, are urged to contact police at the tip line above.
