Charges laid after vehicles set on fire in southeast Calgary

A police vehicle is shown at Calgary Police Service headquarters in Calgary on Thursday, April 9, 2020. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press)

Calgary police have laid charges against a man accused of setting two vehicles on fire in the city’s southeast.

Both fires were started on Monday morning, the first in the 100 block of Legacy Main Street S.E. just before 9 a.m.

Police say the suspect set fire to a 2024 Ford Escape before taking off in a white Ford Focus.

The second fire happened in the 400 block of Walgrove Way S.E. shortly after.

This time, the vehicle targeted was a 2010 VW Tiguan.

Calgary firefighters extinguished both fires; police say no one was injured.

Arson investigators worked with police, who determined the white Ford Focus used by the suspect was a stolen vehicle.

“These fires were intentionally set in busy communities in our city, causing irreversible damage to vehicles and putting the public at risk,” said Staff Sgt. Kurt Jacobs.

At roughly 3:15 p.m. on Monday, police spotted the Ford Focus speeding through the community of Legacy.

“The vehicle drove to the 900 block of Eighth Avenue S.E., where the driver got out and was taken into custody without incident,” police said in a Tuesday news release.

A 31-year-old Calgary man is charged with two counts of arson, among other offences.

He is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday.

Anyone with information on the arsons is asked to call Calgary police at 403-266-1234.

Tips can also be sent anonymously through Crime Stoppers.