Residents in the Mira Mesa neighborhood of San Diego are on high alert as an arsonist has been targeting vehicles in the area.
According to NBC San Diego, the latest attack occurred early Monday morning when four vehicles were set on fire at two different scenes nearly an hour apart. Sadly, this has been an ongoing occurrence as the station reports a total of 33 vehicles have been set ablaze since December 21.
Police are investigating the incidents, but the arsonist appears to be targeting vehicles parked in carports. Unfortunately, police didn’t have much to go on as Sgt. Rick Pechin told the San Diego Union Tribune last week “As of now, we do not have any known witnesses.”
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That’s bad news as the paper reported the arsonist caused nearly $590,000 (£437,573 / €522,117) in damage before the latest incidents. The worst happened on December 22, when 17 vehicles were damaged in one incident alone at the Canyon Bluffs condos. That fire caused an estimated $550,000 (£407,907 / €486,720) in damages.
Nevertheless, authorities might have caught a break as ABC 10 reported a suspect was taken into custody on Monday morning. Police told the station the individual was detained a few blocks away from the latest fire in a Toyota Highlander that matched one seen on surveillance footage.