Man arrested on suspicion of setting fires in Newark, Fremont

Police said no injuries were reported and damage was limited to vegetation, abandoned property and garbage.

FREMONT – A 36-year-old Newark man has been arrested on suspicion of setting a series of small fires in Newark and Fremont, according to police.

The incident unfolded around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, when the first of the fires was reported in the 36000 block of Cedar Boulevard in Newark, the Newark Police Department said in a news release. Witnesses extinguished the fire before officers arrived.

Evidence at the scene suggested arson targeting vegetation and a set of stairs to a building, according to police. The building, which was vacant, sustained minor damage.

Around 11:45 a.m., a piece of furniture was found burning near Balboa Way and Thornton Avenue in Fremont, the Fremont Police Department said in a news release.

Another fire involving a piece of furniture was reported about 20 minutes later in the 35000 block of Fremont Boulevard, according to police. Over the course of the next hour and a half, several other small fires were found burning in the north part of Fremont.

Witnesses at the fire scenes provided the same general description of the suspect, police said.

Around 1:30 p.m., a Fremont police sergeant spotted smoke coming from the area of Thornton Avenue and Interstate 880. The sergeant drove to the scene and found a man starting another fire in a wooded area adjacent to the roadway, according to police.

Fremont police arrested the man on suspicion of arson of property, while Newark police arrested him on suspicion of possession of a flammable material with intent to set fire to a structure.

Police said no injuries were reported from the fires and damage was limited to vegetation, abandoned property and garbage.