Man arrested for arson in Chula Vista

CHULA VISTA - A 23-year-old man was arrested early Sunday for allegedly starting a fire outside an apartment complex, and trying to set other blazes, a Chula Vista police lieutenant said.

Daniel Behrens was taken into custody after a short standoff at 1065 Granjas Road, near Naples Street, Lt. Eric Thunberg said.

The fire was reported around 2:30 a.m. on a first-floor patio, Thunberg said.

Police officers, already in the area handling a disturbance call that also might have involved Behrens, responded quickly and were told of a man who went into an upstairs apartment but didn’t belong there, the lieutenant said.

Thunberg said Behrens came out and returned inside several times and told officers to use their Taser devices on him, which they did.

Investigators then searched the complex.

“Basically, they find three separate areas in the complex where a fire was set with a combustible fluid,” Thunberg said.

Accelerant was also found on the suspect’s hands, he said.

The lieutenant said Behrens was booked into jail on suspicion of a variety of offenses, including arson and attempted arson, with bail set at $1 million.

Tags: arson, chula vista, Daniel Behrens, SDNN

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 1st, 2009 at 2:20 pm and is filed under Crime. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.