A Woodstock man, 46, is facing two arson charges in connection with two blazes over the span of a few days, including one at the fairgrounds, that police say resulted in “millions of dollars in damages.”
Police say a man matching the suspect description from Saturday’s blaze was observed near the scene of Tuesday’s fire and arrested after a short pursuit.
According to police, emergency crews were called to a structure fire at the Woodstock Fairgrounds on Nellis Street at around 6:45 p.m. Tuesday.
“It was believed that the fire there was a suspected arson and we had previously had an arson investigation ongoing from earlier this week so we were concerned that the issues were related,” special constable Shaylyn Jackson told Global News.
While crews worked to douse the flames, the canine unit was called in to help locate a suspect.
Police say an officer noticed a man on Nellis Street who matched the description of the suspect wanted in connection with a suspicious structure fire on Bay Street on Aug. 29. Police say the suspect fled the area but the canine unit and general patrol officers located and arrested a suspect in the area of Dundas and Huron streets.
A specific damage estimate is not yet available, but police have said the impact is likely to be millions of dollars.
“To my knowledge, there have been no injuries (in either incident),” Jackson said.
“We do have police officers and our forensics identification unit there for pretty much all day today so we’re asking that the public try to avoid the area so that they can do their work.”
Woodstock police are also working with Ontario’s Office of the Fire Marshal and Woodstock fire inspector on both arson investigations.