Crime & Safety
Man Suspected of Starting Wednesday's Wildland Fire
About five acres burned not far from downtown Novato.
Novato police arrested a 58-year-old man shortly after a Wednesday and seek charges against him for starting an unlawful fire, police said.
The wildland blaze started at 11:08 a.m. on a hill just west of the downtown area. The single-alarm fire prompted the use of five engines from the plus some off-road trucks. No structures were damaged or immediately threatened, no evacuations were necessary and no one was injured, police said.
Officers identified the suspect as Robert Tournahu, who was located in the area at the time of the fire. After an interview, probable cause was developed to arrest him on suspicion of causing the fire, which remains under investigation.
Find out what's happening in Novatowith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Stay Patched in! Follow Novato Patch on Twitter | Like Novato Patch on Facebook | Sign up for the daily e-mail with links to the latest news.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.