Arson suspects arrested
Published 7:00 am Thursday, March 13, 2014
Two suspects are in custody and a third is being sought in relation to Monday night’s suspected acts of arson.
Picayune Police assistant to the chief of police Jeremy Magri said two suspects are currently in custody for three counts of arson each.
A previous story in the Item reported firefighters responded to four fires Monday night and Tuesday morning, all suspected acts of arson. However, through further investigation it was determined the fire in the driveway of a Stemwood Drive home was accidental, possibly ignited by a cigarette butt, Magri said.
The three other fires reported that same night have been classified as arson through an investigation by the Picayune Police Department, Magri said. The investigation by the Picayune Police Department determined three juveniles were involved in the crimes, Magri said.
The first juvenile suspect was identified and arrested Tuesday through investigative procedures, which included obtaining surveillance video footage, Magri said.
Continued investigation into the case led to the identification of a second suspect, who was arrested Wednesday, Magri said.
The investigation has identified a third suspect, who is currently being sought and is expected to be in custody soon, Magri said.
Currently, the two suspects in custody are both 15-year-old male juveniles.
“The two juveniles have both been charged with three counts each of arson,” Magri said.
The case involved the fire at Friendship Park’s gazebo, which was reported to emergency personnel at 10:50 Monday night, according to a previous story in the Item.
“They had just got that fire out when they got a call to a dumpster fire at Regions Bank,” Brown said in the previous story.
After working the dumpster fire at Regions Bank, which was reported at 11:39 Monday night, another call of a fire came in early Tuesday morning.
The previous story states firefighters were dispatched to an unoccupied two-story apartment building off of Mitchell Street at 1:20 a.m. Tuesday.
No injuries were reported as a result of any of the fires, the previous story states.
Magri said Chief Bryan Dawsey would like to commend his investigators for their diligent work and swift response in solving the crimes and establishing suspects.