Suspected Arsonist Arrested After Pleasant Hill Fires

PLEASANT HILL (CBS SF) - A suspected arsonist was arrested Sunday afternoon after allegedly setting one fire outside a commercial business and trying to set a second one nearby, police and fire officials said.

Firefighters were called at 4:12 p.m. Sunday to the 1800 block of Contra Costa Boulevard, where flames were threatening the exterior of a business, Custom Car Alarms. Contra Costa County Fire Protection District Capt. Steve Aubert said.

As firefighters were working on that, Pleasant Hill police received a call of a man trying to light bushes on fire next to Rasputin Music and the corner of Contra Costa Boulevard and Taylor Boulevard, about a half mile north of Custom Car Alarms. Police Sgt. Janayla Pierson said officers then found 39-year-old Nathan Anthony Hurtado, a local transient, and arrested him on suspicion of two counts of felony arson, and for an outstanding arson warrant.

Pierson said Hurtado was positively identified by people at both the Custom Car Alarms and Rasputin sites. He was booked Sunday into the Contra Costa County Jail in Martinez.

The exterior of the car alarm business sustained some fire damage, authorities said.

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