Residence and vehicle fires set intentionally
Courtesy photo/Moses Lake Police DepartmentA vehicle was intentionally set fire Sunday morning in Moses Lake.
Man victim of three attacks
MOSES LAKE - In roughly 24 hours, a residence and vehicle in a Moses Lake trailer park were vandalized three times, twice with fire over the weekend.
There are no suspects and the victim declined to begin the process of pressing charges, Moses Lake Police Capt. Dave Ruffin said.
The first incident at the West Broadway Avenue residence was reported Saturday, a few minutes after midnight, according to Moses Lake Police. A 26-year-old Moses Lake man who lives at the vandalized residence advised of seeing two subjects approach his residence with two Molotov cocktails.
A Molotov cocktail is a flammable concoction usually encased in a bottle with cloth and some type of petroleum-based flammable liquid, Ruffin said. The concoction is set on fire and when thrown, it quickly spreads fire where the bottle breaks.
One of the Molotov cocktails was thrown through a window at the residence igniting a couch and drapes, Ruffin said.
The two suspects were reportedly seen fleeing the scene on foot toward a nearby neighborhood.
The Moses Lake Fire Department extinguished the fire. No injuries were reported.
The second incident was reported Saturday at approximately 9 p.m., according to police records. A resident in the trailer park reported hearing a loud crash.
Upon hearing the noise, the witness reportedly saw two male subjects fleeing from the vandalized residence.
The crash was reportedly due to a vehicle being vandalized. The windshield on a 1996 Ford Contour belonging to the 26-year-old Moses Lake man was broken, along with the front passenger-side window and a dent made in the front passenger door.
A witness reportedly told police one of the subjects who was fleeing the scene was carrying an object similar to a hatchet. Ruffin said they are investigating.
The final incident was reported Sunday at approximately 1:18 a.m. when the Ford Contour was set on fire, he said.
It's unclear what substance was used to ignite the vehicle, police reported.
The victim advised of seeing two unidentified male subjects fleeing the scene of the vehicle fire.
The 26-year-old male did not confirm the identities of the two suspects but provided a partial description after the vehicle fire incident.
The suspects are described as Hispanic. One suspect was described as approximately 5 foot nine inches tall with a thin build and short hair. The second suspect was described as shorter with a heavy build.
The 26-year-old male reportedly chased one of the suspects but was unable to catch him, Ruffin said.
The Moses Lake Fire Department confirmed the residential fire and the vehicle fire were both started intentionally.
The incident remains under investigation. Ruffin said it is likely the damages were caused by the same two subjects. It is unclear why the 26-year-old man was repeatedly targeted, he said.