Bellingham man suspected of intentionally starting a fire in downtown apartment building
Bellingham Police arrested a man suspected of intentionally starting a fire in an occupied downtown apartment complex Thursday morning.
Jonathan Michael Murdock, 48, was booked into Whatcom County Jail Feb. 18 on suspicion of first-degree arson.
Bellingham Police and Fire were called at 9:47 a.m. Thursday to the 1000 block of North State Street for the report that a resident in an apartment lit a fire and refused to let anyone enter his unit, Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Bellingham Herald in an email.
Firefighters gained access to the apartment and found a fire on the floor and the room full of smoke, Murphy reported. They extinguished the fire.
A witness told police that he saw fire on top of an electric stove in the apartment and Murdock actively feeding the fire by placing paper on the flames, according to Murphy. The flame eventually moved to the floor of the apartment.
The apartment building was a multistory residential complex with many occupied apartments, Murphy reported, adding, “This created a substantial risk of bodily injury or death.”
