Inspectors investigating new car fire's link to arson spree
By: Will Reisman
Examiner Staff Writer
August 20, 2009
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| (AFP/Getty Images) |
SAN FRANCISCO — A car was set on fire early this morning in the Richmond District, not far from where a string of vehicle arsons were reported last month, although police said the incidents are unrelated.
The vehicle was intentionally set ablaze at about 3:15 a.m. near the intersection of 21st Avenue and Balboa Street, according to the Sgt Lyn Tomioka of the San Francisco Police Department.
The fire was started by a flaming book that had been placed underneath the driver’s side door of the vehicle, Tomioka said. A passerby noticed the fire and helped minimize the flames before any serious damage was inflicted on the car, she said. The fire department eventually doused all the flames.
In July, 13 cars were intentionally set on fire during a one-week span, with many of the blazes reported on Geary Boulevard in the Richmond District. Balboa Street is two blocks from Geary Boulevard. The fires were often started by flaming newspapers that were placed under the body of the vehicle.
Despite the similarities between the string of car arsons in July and this morning’s blaze, inspectors are approaching the latest vehicle fire as a completely separate investigation, Tomioka said.
“The investigation is not focused on any prior car fires,” said Tomioka.
The blaze this morning was the first reported in the Richmond District since police arrested 61-year-old Fafa Chan on July 30. Chan was wanted in two previous arson cases involving structure fires in the Financial District. She is still in custody, Tomioka said.
Police have not claimed that Chan was responsible for the string of automobile fires, but they have repeatedly said that since she was arrested, no car arsons had been reported in the Richmond District.
