Convicted arsonist arrested in Greenwood fires
The suspect, who was arrested near the scene of a 3-alarm fire that destroyed a building early Friday in Shoreline, has been identified as Kevin Todd Swalwell, 46, of Seattle.
Records show Swalwell has a lengthy criminal record, including two previous convictions for arson in 1995. Other felonies on his record include burglary, theft and possession of a controlled substance.
Police spokeswoman Renee Witt earlier said Swalwell was detained by Seattle's arson task force at a bus stop about 10 blocks from Friday's ferocious blaze, which also has been ruled an arson.
 The fire in Shoreline early Friday. |
Court documents obtained by KOMO News show that detectives linked Swalwell to an Aug. 13 arson by a palm print found on a container of charcoal lighter fluid left near the scene, a home in the 100 block of NW 84th Street.
Under questioning, Swalwell also admitted to setting several of the Greenwood fires, including a Nov. 9 blaze set at the exterior rear of the Olive You restaurant in the 8500 block of Greenwood Avenue West, court papers show.
At an afternoon news conference, officials expressed hope that his arrest would spell an end to the string of arsons, large and small, that have disturbed residents who live in the area.
"Hopefully we've reached the end of the road regarding arson fires in the Greenwood community," said Kelvin Crenshaw, Special Agent in Charge of the Seattle branch of the ATF.
Crenshaw said there have been 68 arsons in Greenwood in the past two years, including 17 in the past two months.
He said it's believed that Swalwell is responsible for some - but not all 68 - of the Greenwood arsons.
But Seattle Police Assistant Chief Paul McDonagh said it's possible that Swalwell may have started all of the most recent fires.
"The detectives believe that Swalwell is responsible for some, if not all, of the Greenwood arsons," he said. "This person has been seen in the vicinity of three other set fires."
He also said that a second person of interest detained Friday in connection with the arsons has been questioned and released.
Officials said a tip line set up for citizens to report information was instrumental in identifying Swalwell as a suspect in the arson spree.
"We can't thank the Greenwood community enough," said Seattle Fire Department Assistant Chief Alan Vickery.
But he added that investigators are not going to rest, despite the arrest.
"We're going to continue with patrols while this case is under active investigation," he said.
State Department of Corrections spokesman Chad Lewis said DOC officers alerted police to Swalwell, who was under the supervision of the deparment, since he was living in the area and had a history of setting fires.
Lewis said detectives were already looking for Swalwell and had asked the DOC to supervise him normally so he would not be tipped off he was a suspect.
According to Lewis, Swalwell did not report to his community corrections officer as scheduled on Tuesday - the day after four small fires were set in Greenwood - but he did report Thursday.
The fire in Shoreline started just before midnight in a vacant former furniture store at 16900 Aurora Avenue North.
The building was quickly engulfed in flames, and about 70 firefighters from Shoreline, Edmonds, Mountlake Terrace and Seattle worked for hours to get the blaze under control.
No one was injured in the fire.
In Seattle's Greenwood Neighborhood, residents have been on edge after more than a dozen fires were set in recent weeks at area businesses.
Just Monday morning residents awoke to learn four more shops had fallen victim.
The worst was a fire in the neighborhood was on Oct. 23, when four restaurants were destroyed, causing $2 million damage.
On Tuesday, hundreds of Greenwood residents and business owners packed a community meeting to discuss the string of arsons with police and fire officials.
But Friday's arrest of Swalwell already is calming the fears of some people in the neighborhood.
"It would be such a relief if they've caught the guy who's been setting those fires around here," said Nicole, a barista at the Wayward Coffee House, which is near the first businesses that were torched.
"I really hope they find out that the guy they picked up is the one," said resident Heather Swift. "We're tired of this."
Shoreline Fire Department Spokeswoman Melanie Granfors said the Friday morning fire at the vacant store building started in an outbuilding and spread to the rest of the structure.
She said it was an older building without sprinklers or many fire walls, allowing the fire quickly spread.
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