Woman accused of burning police vehicles during protests

SEATTLE (AP) — A woman has been arrested after authorities say she set fire to five Seattle police vehicles during a downtown Seattle protest late last month.

The Seattle Times reports that Margaret Channon, 25, of Tacoma, is accused of of burning police vehicles on May 30. She was arrested Thursday

She is charged by criminal complaint with five counts of arson. It wasn't immediately clear if she had an attorney.

“This defendant was captured by multiple cameras using an accelerant, lit like a blowtorch, to start fires in five vehicles — putting the public at risk and creating the very real possibility of a structure fire amidst the throng of people protesting downtown,” Brian T. Moran, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington, said in the statement.

The five vehicles were a 2018 Ford Transit Connect van, a 2006 Dodge Caravan, a 2009 Chevrolet Express van, a 2016 Ford Explorer and a 2017 Ford Explorer, according to the criminal complaint. Channon used an aerosol can and flame to ignite the five vehicles, the complaint alleges.