Castlegar house target of arson

At approximately 1:00am on September 12, 2023 a resident in the 2900 block of 5th Avenue in Castlegar, BC observed fire coming from his neighbor’s property. The witness and a family member called emergency services and attended to the property to extinguish the flames. While in the process of extinguishing the flames, they observed what they believed were molotov cocktails and two occupants of the home, a man and his 10-year-old son, exited the residence uninjured.

Castlegar Fire Department and the RCMP attended to the scene and confirmed the fire was a result of suspect(s) throwing incendiary devices onto the property. Fortunately, the neighbors were alerted to the fire and acted quickly to extinguish the flames before the fire spread. The home owner and his young son were alerted to the fire by smoke in the house and their neighbors outside extinguishing the flames. As a result, there were no injuries and damage to the house and surrounding property was to a minimum.

Castlegar RCMP have seized evidence to support the investigation and conducted neighborhood enquiries to identify witnesses to the crime.

Police are continuing to investigate and request anyone with information to contact the Castlegar RCMP at (250) 365-7721.