Suspect arrested for New Year’s arson at Neighbours nightclub
Feb 1, 2014, 5:26 PM | Updated: Feb 3, 2014, 6:37 pm
Seattle Police arrested a 30-year-old suspect they believe set a fire at the gay nightclub just after midnight on Jan. 1. (KIRO Radio/Chris Sullivan)
(KIRO Radio/Chris Sullivan)
Police have arrested a suspect for setting a fire just after midnight on New Year’s inside Seattle’s oldest gay nightclub.
Seattle Police arrested a 30-year-old suspect they believe set a fire at the nightclub just after midnight on Jan. 1.
Police say the man was headed to the airport when they nabbed him.
Detectives from the Arson/Bomb Squad, working with members of the Joint Terrorism Task Force, have been investigating this case since the early morning hours of New Years Day.
Detectives say they received a lot of tips on the suspect who has been booked into the King County Jail for Investigation of Arson.
According to court documents, Seattle Police discovered that their suspect was on his way to SeaTac airport with a one-way ticket to Turkey.
He was arrested while leaving his home in Bellevue, and had both a U.S. passport and a Libyan passport.
While prosecutors say he is a U.S. citizen, it’s not clear yet what his ties to the other countries are.
Nearly 700 people were celebrating at Neighbours just after midnight when customers noticed the staircase was on fire.
Management later discovered a gasoline container near the stairs. No one was hurt.
Report by KIRO Radio’s Val Stouffer.
