Arson suspect arrested after Old Colorado City fire

(COLORADO SPRINGS) — The Colorado Springs Fire Department (CSFD) said a structure fire on Friday morning, Dec. 29 in Old Colorado City was caused by an unlawful burn from a fire outside of the building, and a suspect has since been taken into custody.

In an update sent on Tuesday, Jan. 2 just before 11 a.m., CSFD said its investigators, along with officers from the Colorado Springs Police Department (CSPD), identified the suspect.

CSPD obtained an arrest warrant for the suspect, identified as 55-year-old James Bozarth on the charge of Fourth-Degree Arson, a class two felony. On Tuesday morning, officers took Bozarth into custody without incident at 4 a.m. in the 1400 block of West Colorado Avenue.


ORIGINAL COVERAGE: CSFD investigating cause of large fire in Old Colorado City

CSFD originally responded to the fire at 4 a.m. on Friday in the 2100 block of Naegele Road, which is just north of Highway 24 and 21st Street. When crews arrived, they could see large flames coming from the building and could hear explosions, likely from cars inside.

CSFD said a second alarm was called for additional resources, and the fire was under control just before 4:50 a.m. In total, 52 CSFD personnel responded to the scene. One firefighter received a minor burn and was treated on scene. There were no other injuries.

“CSFD Investigators responded to determine the origin and cause of the fire,” wrote CSFD. “The fire started outside of the building and extended inside the structure causing extensive damage to the building and its contents.”

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