4 Arson Fires And A Burglary Occur Overnight In Brockton

BROCKTON, MA — Officials still have ongoing work to do in looking for the suspects of the four arson fires that happened Wednesday along with a burglary at the Westgate mall that is also related to the fires.

The first of four intentionally set fires occurred at 12:54 A.M. at what is called the old state house Deputy Fire Chief Edward Williams said. This fire was a 5-alarm configuration that destroyed the old state house which is located at the Brockton Fairgrounds. The building had to be toppled after going out in flames due to its weak structure since it is old and ornate with dried-out wood. Firefighters brought in more help to try and put the fire out quicker, but it was not enough to save the building.

Moments later, a brush fire was reported at West Junior High School on 271 West St., Williams stated at 1:15 A.M.

"I think the timing of all of it, the building doesn't have any utilities going to it except for power. Other fires going on at the same time — I definitely see it as potentially suspicious," Brian Nardelli, Brockton Fire Department Deputy Chief stated.

Simultaneously, police reported to a burglary by two people at the Sears store in the Westgate Mall. One of the suspects was caught on camera and he was reportedly "lighting fires" around the city that night.

After the break-in, another brush fire occurred in the D.W. Field Park according to authorities. The final act of arson was located on the turf of the football field at Rocky Marciano Stadium when an item was lit on fire that ended up damaging the artificial turf, officials stated in the press release. Furthermore, in the press release, officials said that the burglary and 4 cases of arson are all related to each other and that it is more than likely that they were committed by the same people.

The old state building that was destroyed was built in 1938 and was a replica of the old State House in Boston said the owner of the Brockton Fairgrounds, George Carney. In a telephone interview, Carney stated, "Nobody got hurt, that's the most important thing".

Police are still on the lookout and released a photo of the person of interest that is connected to these cases. This man also dropped pieces of clothing that are now being used as evidence.

Officials have publicly stated and reached out to ask the public if anyone has further information about the fires to call the arson hotline at 800-682-9229, the Brockton Police Department at 508-941-0200, or the Brockton Fire Department at 508-583-2933. All calls that are made will stay confidential. The arson hotline can potentially offer up to $5,000 for information that helps to solve an arson case as they are part of a reward program.