SPOKANE, Wash. — A Spokane man faces felony charges after deliberately setting a fire near a gas station and train tracks on Aug. 27, according to the Spokane Police Department.
Jacob S. Brooks, 29, was arrested and booked into Spokane County Jail on charges of Reckless Burning 1st Degree following the incident at W. 3rd Avenue and S. Maple Street.
Spokane Fire Department quickly extinguished the fire in dry grass. A witness described Brooks using a pink butane torch lighter to ignite the grass and reported he attempted to light two additional fires that were unsuccessful. The witness followed Brooks to a downtown business parking lot, where police arrested him.
Officers observed soot on Brooks’ face and burn holes in his shirt. During the arrest, police located a pink butane torch lighter on his person.
Video footage from the nearby gas station confirmed Brooks started the fire in the dry grass near the train tracks.
COPYRIGHT 2026 BY KXLY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
