Man accused of starting fire in downtown Olympia

A 28-year-old man has been booked into the Thurston County Jail on suspicion of second-degree arson in connection with a Sunday morning fire in a downtown Olympia alley, according to Olympia police.

He also was booked on first-degree criminal impersonation — he allegedly didn’t use his real name when he was detained by police — and he was wanted on two outstanding warrants for unlawful possession of a controlled substance and second-degree theft, according to jail information.

About 9:30 a.m. Sunday, the city of Olympia’s clean team and the downtown walking patrol discovered a small fire in an alley near the 400 block of Franklin Street Southeast.

A sweatshirt had been set ablaze on top of two pieces of cardboard, Lt. Paul Lower said.

The man was later detained and they found evidence of materials that could be used to start a fire, Lower said. Police also reviewed downtown video cameras that showed the man entering the scene wearing a sweatshirt, but exiting without one.

This story was originally published April 29, 2019 at 11:36 AM.