Authorities issue search warrant for Mead man suspected in several fires since 2015

A search warrant has been issued for a 22-year-old Mead man who authorities suspect was involved in a series of fires over the past three years.

In addition to a July 7 wildfire at Riverside State Park this year, the man is under suspicion for the 2015 Little Spokane fires that saw 12 homes evacuated and cost more than $2 million, according to an affidavit by Washington State Department of Natural Resources Officer Allan E. Gallanger Jr.

As a matter of policy, The Spokesman-Review does not name parties who have not been arrested.

The warrant, which intends to uncover evidence of first-degree arson and reckless burning, includes the man’s home and other structures on the property and his 2001 Subaru Impreza.

Though no direct evidence currently links the man to the 2015 fires, Gallanger wrote that the similarities between the fires has led him to believe the man to be responsible.

The 22-year-old was also a person of interest in a 2016 fire that occurred in a spot not far from the 2017 fire at Riverside State Park.

Authorities witnessed the man at the scene of the July 7 fire, and noted while interviewing him that he had a Bic lighter in the back seat of his car. The man’s clothing was also covered in cheatgrass seeds, which suggested he had ventured off-trail near the site of the fire.

The individual in question is known to have a history of setting fires as a juvenile in the area around Meadow Ridge Elementary School in Mead, not far from the man’s home, according to the affidavit.

The man also exhibited behavioral problems in middle school and high school, including arrests for a series of false 911 calls, and he ultimately left or was expelled from Mt. Spokane High School, the document stated.

Over the course of his interactions as a juvenile with Gallanger – and with Spokane County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chris Young, who served as a school resource officer for Mt. Spokane High School – the man allegedly told authorities that “I really like fire” and that he “liked chaos,” according to the affidavit.

Arsonists often keep “mementos” of their crimes, and they also have a “keen interest” in information and media regarding fires, Gallanger wrote.