The confessions of an alleged 'serial arsonist' have cleared a dozen cases, according to Shreveport Fire investigators. So far, 38-year-old Gary Vinson is only charged in connection with the blaze that destroyed the historic building that houses the administrative offices of the Shreveport Regional Arts Council, but more charges are expected.
Assistant to the Fire Chief Fred Sanders said in all, Vinson has confessed to 12 "separate and distinct" fires, including two from this past weekend and several others over the past month. Shreveport Fire Chief Brian Crawford said it was Tuesday's spree through downtown Shreveport that led to his arrest. "Several of the vehicles in last night's arson fires were related to the same individual who had sustained a car fire from a previous incident he was involved in, so that led us to this individual."
Vinson was arrested in 2008 for setting a car on fire outside the Shreveport-Bossier Rescue Mission. He pleaded guilty to the charge in November and was to have been sentenced in late January. A warrant was issued for his arrest when he failed to appear in court.
Chief Crawford said Vinson had been kicked out of the Shreveport-Bossier Rescue Mission, where several cars were torched Tuesday morning. "That's actually the warehouse for the rescue mission, there may be some relationship to those those incidents occurring and him seeking some type of vengeance," the chief said.
It was enough, Crawford said, to give investigators a solid lead who they were looking for. "They came to me with a name and 30 minutes later they came to me with a photo ID and said, 'This is the guy we're looking for,' and I said, 'Well hurry up and find him because we're fighting our fourth fire area, our seventh fire of the night. He's going east to west, so I hope you can get him before he gets to a residence and actually hurts somebody with a fire.'" Within hours, Vinson was in police custody.
For now, Vinson faces one count of simple arson. Conviction on the felony charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years and up to a $15,000 fine upon conviction. Simple arson is the intentional setting of fire to the property of another. Sanders says Vinson could also face aggravated arson charges, if investigators feel they can prove there was foreseeable that human life was endangered by Vinson's actions.
Federal charges of arson of a religious building are also possible, according to Sanders. Federal agents would have to present that case to a federal grand jury. Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms agents were on the scene Tuesday of two of the seven fires investigators say were intentionally set. Crews were called to the 1000 block of Texas Avenue at 5:17 am, and arrived to find cross ties burning in an alleyway behind the Antioch Baptist Church. Another small fire was spotted against the south exterior wall of what was believed to be a vacant building but later was identified as the Second Chance Temple of Deliverance Ministries Church.
Fire investigators say in all, seven fires were deliberately set in four different locations early Tuesday. Firefighters were the first to see the SRAC blaze. They were responding to another fire call at the corner of Louisiana Avenue and Snow Street when they saw flames coming from the SRAC offices. A second alarm was called as the fire quickly consumed the building, followed by a third alarm 40 minutes later. Fire crews eventually took a defensive stance against the fire, deciding to let the fire burn itself out while making sure it didn't spread.
Eight hours after the 4 am fire began, four fire trucks remained at the scene in the 800 block of Snow Street to keep an eye on the smoldering remains.
According to the city of Shreveport, the SRAC offices were originally built in 1941 as a USO, across from what was then the main train station. In the 1950s, it was the main office for Shreveport Parks and Recreation.
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1:15News Live Shot Timelapse 2fps 350.0 HVX200by ziocody12,894 views
Is it irony that the end of the Shreveport Regional Arts Council building has become art itself with this video you have time lapsed?
RedRiverBlogJam 2 years ago
Irony yes but only if you consider my work art. Thanks!
ziocody 2 years ago
Hey, nice vid Cody. Kinda makes me wish I were still out in the field. I think my favorite part was actually seeing the sky lighten as the sun began to rise.
LeeStridsberg 2 years ago
Thanks Lee, I owe you on hunting down the very settings I used to shoot this. I did slow the run time from a minute thirty to over two minutes to fit the edited music.
ziocody 2 years ago