PITTSBURG, Calif. -- A 53-year-old Pittsburg man set more than 50 small fires around eastern Contra Costa County, mostly in trash bins and similar waste containers, investigators said Wednesday.
Detectives from the Contra Costa Fire District and Pittsburg police arrested Thomas Hartman last week after a six-month investigation of arsons at seven different shopping centers in Antioch and Pittsburg.
"Most of the fires were concentrated in that area," said Fire Investigator Vic Massenkoff. "We think he may be responsible for over 60 fires."
The district, the county's only fire department with full-time, sworn fire detectives, identified a pattern of fires in June. The sporadic blazes dated back to January 2010, Massenkoff said, with the most recent breaking out on Dec. 3.
The fires typically damaged trash containers and the exterior walls of businesses, causing damage estimated in the tens of thousands of dollars. The arsonist returned to burn the same containers in more than one case, investigators said.
Nobody was hurt in any of the fires.
Investigators got a warrant for Hartman's arrest on Dec. 15 and arrested him in Pittsburg. He remained in County Jail in Martinez on Wednesday, charged with one count of arson to property.
Hartman is unemployed.
Contra Costa Fire District encourages large retailers and owners of retail outlets to improve lighting and video surveillance equipment behind their businesses, particularly
in storage or utility areas such as loading docks, and to keep their trash containers and enclosures locked.
Massenkoff said he could not comment on details of the case because the investigation continues.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
