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Saitama cops arrest man suspected in series of arson cases

Azuma Morikubo
Azuma Morikubo(TBS News)
SAITAMA (TR) – Saitama Prefectural Police have arrested a 53-year-old man who is suspected in a series of arson incidents in Kumagaya City, reports NHK (Oct. 2).

At 11:20 p.m. on Sunday, Azuma Morikubo allegedly started a fire inside the assembly hall of an apartment complex located in the Kubojima area.

Morikubo, who has been accused of attempted arson, has declined to comment on the allegations, according to police.

According to police, there have been eight similar fires that started in vacant houses, storage rooms and other places under suspicious circumstances within a 250-meter radius since June. Thus far, police have confirmed that Morikubo was in the immediate area immediately following more than half of the incidents.

Morikubo lives inside the building that was targeted in the case on October 1. He emerged as a person of interest after a witness saw him in the vicinity of the building just prior to the start of the fire.