Galveston fire marshals believe they've finally nabbed the man responsible for torching palm trees over the past 20 years.
Jason Smith, 53, considered the primary suspect in 27 arson probes, is being held on $100,000 bond, KHOU reported.
George West, a local resident who has a tree service, was elated to hear the news that someone was in custody.
"I'm so happy when the day they caught him. It was the best day in Galveston when they caught that guy. It was a blessing," he said.
West has done more than just reading about the incidents over the years. He wasn't willing to sit idly by.
"We lost thousands and thousands of palm trees from the freeze and this guy wants to continue to burn palm trees. Like, what is your problem, man?" West told a reporter.
Several years ago, he placed an ad in the paper offering a $1,000 reward for the suspect's arrest. But, it appeared that the serial palm tree arsonist didn't approve.
"That's why I put video cameras up here. I put them up here because I said, 'I'm going to catch this guy. Come over here to the park and burn them, I'm going to catch this guy,'" West said. "When I got my newspaper the next morning, I had a little lighter fluid can wrapped up in my newspaper stuck back in the plastic in front of my shop."
West continued his probe and determined the suspect only struck between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., burning trees between 26th and 32nd streets.
"He loves Mexican palms. They light up too good for him. He loves it, I guess," West told reporters.
Some of the tree fires spread to structures.
On May 30, a video captured a man on a bicycle ignite a palm tree and pedal away. Flames damaged a 100-year-old house.
Authorities got what they'd been hoping for -- a tip on who the man was.
Officials think Jason Smith, 53, is responsible for nearly 30 fires in the past 20 years. MORE: https://www.khou.com/article/news/crime/suspected-galveston-palm-tree-arsonist-caught/285-525ab9cb-4347-409d-a7da-f8e9184bd1f9 REMEMBER: KHOU 11+ is always streaming on Roku and FireTV https://khou.com/plus Follow KHOU 11 News on social! ➡️FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/khou11 ➡️TWITTER: https://www.twitter.com/khou ➡️INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/khou11 Visit our website: https://www.khou11.com
