(Natural News) A Portland man was arrested twice first on Sunday evening and then again on Monday morning for lighting several fires using Molotov cocktails along Interstate 205. The first incident began at 4:35 p.m. on Sunday, September 13, when the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) was called by Portland Fire & Rescue (PF & R) to assist them in putting out a fire in the 9600 block of East Burnside Street, which straddles the border between the Southeast and Northeast Portland neighborhoods. PPB said nobody was injured and no structures were damaged by the fires.
Around an hour after the fire was extinguished, PPB officers were flagged down by a person who witnessed the incident. The witness pointed the officers towards a suspect, a man living in a nearby tent.
The suspect was identified as Domingo Lopez, Jr. When confronted by PPB officers, he admitted to lighting the fire using a Molotov cocktail. When police searched his belongings, they seized a plastic bottle with a wick as evidence. Lopez was booked into the jail in the Multnomah County Sheriffs Office but was released soon after. (Related: Oregon State Police officers in Portland deputized as federal officers to avoid having rioters repeatedly released by Left-wing Soros-funded prosecutors.)
Just hours after Lopez was released, at 3:37 a.m. on Monday morning, officers were once again called in by PF & R to assist after more fires were reported. This time, six small fires were found burning along the west side of I-205. Firefighters put out three while passing volunteers from the community extinguished the other three. Nobody was injured, and no structures were damaged.
Moments later, officers found Lopez walking along the shoulder of the freeway and arrested him. He had a lighter on him, which was seized as evidence.
The PPB transported Lopez to a hospital on a police officer hold, where he will be undergoing a mental health evaluation. Lopez is currently being charged with seven counts of reckless burning and one count of second-degree disorderly conduct. Officers stated that arson investigators are doing follow-ups to determine if Lopez was responsible for setting any other fires in the area.
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