Man pleads guilty to arson in $6M apartment building fire

By Morgan Jacobsen

December 15th, 2014 @ 4:36pm

Scott G. Winterton/Deseret News/File

SALT LAKE CITY A Bountiful man pleaded guilty Monday to setting fire to an unfinished Salt Lake apartment building in February, causing about $6 million in damage.

Dustin Jay Bowman, who stood in a red jumpsuit with his hands shackled at his waist, pleaded guilty to arson as part of a resolution with prosecutors.

Federal prosecutor Drew Yeates will recommend a prison sentence of 48 months and a fine of just under $3 million when Bowman, 34, is sentenced on March 4.

Days after the Feb. 9 blaze, Bowman admitted during an interview with investigators that he started a fire in the apartment building, where he was involved in construction as an electrician. That interview was later challenged by Bowman's attorney, Jamie Zenger, because police reportedly did not inform Bowman of his Miranda rights.

Zenger made a motion to suppress Bowman's confession, though prosecutors say Bowman offered to help investigators and told them during the interview that he knew he was not obligated to speak to them.

U.S. District Judge Ted Stewart granted the motion to suppress Bowman's statements during that interview, but denied a motion to suppress a later confession at the Salt Lake County Jail.

Excerpt from:
Man pleads guilty to arson in $6M apartment building fire

Towanda, Bradford County -- Photos showed the early stages of a fierce fire that ripped through an apartment building in Towanda. It was Saturday morning around 10:30 when flames shot from the historic brick building known as Bailey Block at the corner of Main Street and Seebick Alley. "It was a stubborn fire to fight," said Towanda Fire Chief Bill Roff. As smoke poured from the fire scene, he said what made things especially stubborn was the age and construction of Bailey Block. "With the brick building and the number of apartments in there it was hard to get everybody out." But that they did -- including one tenant in an apartment who didn't realize for about a half-hour that the building was on fire. "There was a woman on the south side apartment third floor in the window waving to us, so we got a ladder up to her, but she ended up coming down the stairs herself getting herself out," said Chief Roof.

Nine families totaling 16 people had to evacuate. Chief Roof says the fire started in a second floor apartment and spread through a common attic. The difference maker in containing the fire was helped by upwards of 100 firefighters who left their families to respond on a cold, December day. "We had a lot of manpower here for one thing and the ladder trucks were a tremendous help. And then the fire wall stopped it from spreading to the other building."

Another tremendous help according to North Towanda Fire & Rescue volunteer Derric Bailey

was the community itself which rallied to respond in a time of crisis. "We've got firefighters and volunteers from all over Bradford County showing up to help. People that came on mutual aid calls and also people that just showed up from the community in general to do what they can. We've had cash donations dropped off at the Dandy Mini Mart to go directly to the fire department. We've even had private citizens show up with food out of their own kitchens to help out any way they can."

Chief Roof says it appears careless smoking is to blame for the Towanda fire. The Red Cross is providing food clothing and shelter to the fire victims.

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Fire Rips Through Historic Towanda Apartment Building, Chases 16

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Los Angeles Fire - The Gates of Hell
Massive apartment building construction site burns in Los Angeles to the Francesca da Rimini Overture by Tchaikovsky. 2:00 am December 8, 2014.

By: Samuel Schlosser

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Los Angeles Fire - The Gates of Hell - Video

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Massive overnight fires leave multiple buildings destroyed in Los Angeles.

Fire destroyed a seven-storey apartment building under construction in downtown Los Angeles and spread to a neighbouring high-rise before flames were largely extinguished, forcing a major freeway shutdown through rush hour.

The blaze erupted at about 1:30am local time on Monday and took about three hours to bring under control, but no injuries were reported, said Katherine Main, a spokeswoman for Los Angeles City Fire Department.

About 250 firefighters, roughly a quarter of the city's total on-duty force, were battling the flames at the height of the blaze, she said.

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Massive fire closes freeways in downtown Los Angeles

By Bob Keeler bkeeler@montgomerynews.com @bybobkeeler on Twitter

There will be a hearing for the plans before the Franconia Township Zoning Hearing Board in January. An application for the funding program will also be submitted in January, Carol Berster, Peter Beckers president and CEO, said.

Its going to be paid for with low-income housing tax credits, Berster said.

Organizations that invest in the project through a state program supported through the federal government get tax credits, she said.

The building will have 44 one- and two-bedroom independent living apartments, she said.

The rents are based on income, she said.

The median household income in Montgomery County is about $79,000 per year, she said. The building will have three apartments for people whose income is up to 20 percent of that; 21 for individuals or couples whose income is up to 50 percent of the median; and 20 apartments for those whose income is up to 60 percent, she said.

Its not actually really, really low-income, Berster said. It is designed to be affordable housing for people such as retirees on Social Security, but who have little other income or savings, she said.

Background checks will be done on all the tenants, she said.

Unlike the rest of Peter Becker, where the minimum age is 55, the tenants of the new building will have to be at least 62, she said. Continued...

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Peter Becker Community in Harleysville plans for 44-apartment addition

By CHRISTOPHER WEBER Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Federal and local investigators tried Tuesday to determine whether an arsonist set a fire that turned an unfinished downtown Los Angeles apartment complex into a block of flames so hot that freeway signs melted and windows cracked in office high-rises as far as a block away.

Crews were dousing hot spots and smoke was billowing more than 24 hours after flames engulfed the wooden frame of the seven-story construction site, leaving a smoldering heap of wood and metal.

The fire that broke out early Monday caused an estimated $10 million in losses to the Da Vinci apartment complex, city fire Capt. Jaime Moore told the Los Angeles Times (http://lat.ms/1wu0xgF ).

Another $1.5 million in damage was done to a freeway where a sign melted and traffic-monitoring fiber-optic cables under the pavement may have to be replaced, authorities said.

Fire officials said they suspect arson because the fire erupted so quickly over so much of the building.

"It's very rare for the entire building to be engulfed at once," Moore said. "There may have been foul play."

City fire investigators and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will look at surveillance recordings and use dogs that can sniff fire accelerants.

Flames were visible for miles Monday and rained ash onto freeways flanking the construction site. Some signs melted and portions of U.S. 101 and Interstate 110 were shut down as burning debris fell into lanes.

Three floors of a nearby 16-story city-owned building had fire damage and the other floors sustained water damage.

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Investigators consider arson in LA apartment fire

LOS ANGELES A raging fire Monday destroyed a massive apartment complex under construction in downtown Los Angeles, sending up flames that were visible for miles while raining ash on a large area and snarling rush-hour traffic.

It was one of two destructive early morning fires in the city. The other heavily damaged a building that housed multiple businesses in a neighborhood a couple miles away.

More than 250 firefighters fought the downtown blaze that was sparked around 1:20 a.m. at a block-long building site, Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas said.

Flames consumed the seven-story, wood-framed structure and scorched adjacent high-rises before being brought under control within 90 minutes.

The radiant heat was strong enough to burst or crack windows in three nearby buildings that house city and county offices including the LA Department of Water and Power.

Three floors of one adjacent building were damaged by fire, and 14 other floors sustained water damage. That building was closed for the day.

Embers spewed from the fire landed across a freeway, igniting brush and charring a traffic sign. But fortunately winds were light and did not blow the fire even farther.

Portions of U.S. Route 101 and Interstate 110 were shut down for a time as burning debris fell into lanes. Commuter traffic slow-moving on good days remained jammed long after rush hour, with vehicles backed up for miles even after the freeways reopened.

No injuries were reported. The burned structure was planned to be a 1.3 million-square-foot residential building one of a series of very large complexes that have gone up in recent years. The site was still smoldering by late morning, and downtown was littered with ash.

Shortly after 4 a.m., another large fire was reported at a mixed-use building undergoing renovations about 2 miles to the west. More than 100 firefighters from multiple agencies responded and had the flames under control in less than two hours, according to Chief Deputy Mario D. Rueda.

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2 raging fires destroy construction site, damage buildings, snarl traffic in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES A raging fire Monday destroyed a massive apartment complex under construction in downtown Los Angeles, sending up flames that were visible for miles while raining ash on a large area and snarling rush-hour traffic.

It was one of two destructive early morning fires in the city. The other heavily damaged a building that housed multiple businesses in a neighborhood a couple miles away.

More than 250 firefighters fought the downtown blaze that was sparked around 1:20 a.m. at a block-long building site, Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas said.

Flames consumed the seven-story, wood-framed structure and scorched adjacent high-rises before being brought under control within 90 minutes.

The radiant heat was strong enough to burst or crack windows in three nearby buildings that house city and county offices including the LA Department of Water and Power.

Three floors of one adjacent building were damaged by fire, and 14 other floors sustained water damage. That building was closed for the day.

Embers spewed from the fire landed across a freeway, igniting brush and charring a traffic sign. But fortunately winds were light and did not blow the fire even farther.

Portions of U.S. Route 101 and Interstate 110 were shut down for a time as burning debris fell into lanes. Commuter traffic slow-moving on good days remained jammed long after rush hour, with vehicles backed up for miles even after the freeways reopened.

No injuries were reported. The burned structure was planned to be a 1.3 million-square-foot residential building one of a series of very large complexes that have gone up in recent years. The site was still smoldering by late morning, and downtown was littered with ash.

Shortly after 4 a.m., another large fire was reported at a mixed-use building undergoing renovations about 2 miles to the west. More than 100 firefighters from multiple agencies responded and had the flames under control in less than two hours, according to Chief Deputy Mario D. Rueda.

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Crews douse 2 large fires in Los Angeles