Homeless felon charged with 11 arson counts
SEATTLE -- A homeless felon suspected in a string of arsons that has terrorized Seattle's Greenwood community in recent months was charged with 11 counts of arson on Tuesday.
Kevin Todd Swalwell, 46, faces three counts of first-degree arson and eight counts of second-degree arson for his alleged involvement in a string of fires across Greenwood over the past two months.
Prosecutors also charged Swalwell with one count of second-degree burglary, alleging he stole a safe from one building just before he set it ablaze.
The standard sentencing range for convictions on those charges would normally be between 9 to 12 years in prison, but King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said he will be seeking an exceptional sentence.
"I think a sentence of 36 years is more appropriate. That's three times the top of the standard range, but this individual has a significant criminal history. He has already been convicted of six different arsons prior to this string of arsons," he said. "We filed everything we could file here, and even that doesn't get me where we need to be."
Investigators said he confessed to setting that fire as well as 10 of the 17 arsons reported in the Greenwood neighborhood north of downtown over the previous two months.
Records show Swalwell has prior convictions for arson in 1995. Other felonies on his record include burglary, theft and possession of a controlled substance.
Swalwell was arrested early Friday near the scene of a 3-alarm fire that destroyed a vacant Shoreline warehouse. After questioning, he was booked into King County jail for investigation of arson.
Under questioning by detectives, Swalwell admitted to setting 11 of the 17 Greenwood fires reported in the last two months, including a Nov. 9 blaze set at the exterior rear of the Olive You restaurant in the 8500 block of Greenwood Avenue West, court documents state.
In a statement to investigators quoted in charging papers, Swalwell said he had been killing time riding on a Metro bus when he went to Shoreline to collect cigarette butts. He happened to walk by an empty building and saw there was a trash bin with cardboard in it.
"I got the cardboard out of the Dumpster and, and there was a cupboard-like thing in the back of the building and I, uh, put it in there and, and, uh, lit it on fire," he said.
No motive was described. Swalwell does not yet have an attorney of record.
The string of arsons has caused millions of dollars in damage to area homes and businesses.
The fires closed some popular businesses in the area, including a coffee shop, restaurants and a classical-guitar store. One man was severely burned when his home was set on fire. A palm print from a can of lighter fluid at that fire matched Swalwell's, detectives said. One man was burned during the incident, but managed to escape.
"That really got the community gripped with fear. You don't know when you go to bed at night if your house is going to get set on fire while you're asleep," said Satterberg.
The worst fire in the neighborhood was on Oct. 23, when four restaurants were destroyed, causing $2 million in damages.
"The frightening thing about this individual is that he continued to escalate in his targets," Satterberg said. "At first, these were minor crimes in a dumpster or in a shed and maybe it's $100 in damage or $500 damage. And then he moved up to occupied homes."
A probable cause affidavit states that Swalwell was seen at near least four of the fires, and he provided a false name when questioned by police near the scene of a photography store arson.
Swalwell told detectives he started the fires with cardboard boxes, newspaper and clothing, the affidavit said. He was previously convicted of arson once in 1983 and five times in 1995, and also has been convicted repeatedly of theft and cocaine possession. Prosecutors said he was on community supervision when he set the fires and had failed to comply with court-ordered mental health counseling.
Swalwell remains held on $1 million bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Dec. 1.
Read the full charging documents.
Kevin Todd Swalwell, 46, faces three counts of first-degree arson and eight counts of second-degree arson for his alleged involvement in a string of fires across Greenwood over the past two months.
Prosecutors also charged Swalwell with one count of second-degree burglary, alleging he stole a safe from one building just before he set it ablaze.
The standard sentencing range for convictions on those charges would normally be between 9 to 12 years in prison, but King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said he will be seeking an exceptional sentence.
"I think a sentence of 36 years is more appropriate. That's three times the top of the standard range, but this individual has a significant criminal history. He has already been convicted of six different arsons prior to this string of arsons," he said. "We filed everything we could file here, and even that doesn't get me where we need to be."
Investigators said he confessed to setting that fire as well as 10 of the 17 arsons reported in the Greenwood neighborhood north of downtown over the previous two months.
Records show Swalwell has prior convictions for arson in 1995. Other felonies on his record include burglary, theft and possession of a controlled substance.
Swalwell was arrested early Friday near the scene of a 3-alarm fire that destroyed a vacant Shoreline warehouse. After questioning, he was booked into King County jail for investigation of arson.
Under questioning by detectives, Swalwell admitted to setting 11 of the 17 Greenwood fires reported in the last two months, including a Nov. 9 blaze set at the exterior rear of the Olive You restaurant in the 8500 block of Greenwood Avenue West, court documents state.
In a statement to investigators quoted in charging papers, Swalwell said he had been killing time riding on a Metro bus when he went to Shoreline to collect cigarette butts. He happened to walk by an empty building and saw there was a trash bin with cardboard in it.
"I got the cardboard out of the Dumpster and, and there was a cupboard-like thing in the back of the building and I, uh, put it in there and, and, uh, lit it on fire," he said.
No motive was described. Swalwell does not yet have an attorney of record.
The string of arsons has caused millions of dollars in damage to area homes and businesses.
The fires closed some popular businesses in the area, including a coffee shop, restaurants and a classical-guitar store. One man was severely burned when his home was set on fire. A palm print from a can of lighter fluid at that fire matched Swalwell's, detectives said. One man was burned during the incident, but managed to escape.
"That really got the community gripped with fear. You don't know when you go to bed at night if your house is going to get set on fire while you're asleep," said Satterberg.
The worst fire in the neighborhood was on Oct. 23, when four restaurants were destroyed, causing $2 million in damages.
"The frightening thing about this individual is that he continued to escalate in his targets," Satterberg said. "At first, these were minor crimes in a dumpster or in a shed and maybe it's $100 in damage or $500 damage. And then he moved up to occupied homes."
A probable cause affidavit states that Swalwell was seen at near least four of the fires, and he provided a false name when questioned by police near the scene of a photography store arson.
Swalwell told detectives he started the fires with cardboard boxes, newspaper and clothing, the affidavit said. He was previously convicted of arson once in 1983 and five times in 1995, and also has been convicted repeatedly of theft and cocaine possession. Prosecutors said he was on community supervision when he set the fires and had failed to comply with court-ordered mental health counseling.
Swalwell remains held on $1 million bail and is scheduled to be arraigned Dec. 1.
Read the full charging documents.