Woman charged in Army Surplus fire

SANDPOINT — A suspect has been arrested in connection with the arson fire that destroyed a downtown business July 4.

Jennifer S. Meyer, 50, was identified as the suspect following a review of multiple hours of video of the fire at Sandpoint Army Surplus and "good old-fashioned police work," Sandpoint Police Chief Corey Coon said. 

The Sandpoint police chief said SPD's Investigative Division has spent the past several days sorting through tips, video surveillance, and canvassing the neighborhood for any leads. 

Meyer was interviewed Tuesday by Sandpoint Police and subsequently taken into custody on a charge of first-degree arson, Coon said. Meyer will have her first appearance Wednesday, July 17.

Currently, a motive for setting the fire is unknown, Coon said.

Meyer is charged with setting fire to the longtime Sandpoint business, which was destroyed in the July 4 fire. The fire was reported at about 10:15 p.m., shortly after the community fireworks show ended. 

The announcement came following a visit to the site by the Idaho State Fire Marshal's Office and Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, which launched an investigation into the fire. The agencies are being assisted in the investigation by Sandpoint Police.

Coon said the department received several hours of surveillance video, two 10-second snippets of which were released to the public Monday, July 8. After examining the footage, an individual could be seen walking east on Oak Street at about 10 p.m. and subsequently turning down the parking lot behind Army Surplus.

"This individual then proceeded into the alleyway, stopping approximately halfway down, before approaching the south wall of Army Surplus," Coon said. "After a short period, a flame on the south wall is observed."

Police said the individual was observed stepping back from the flame before walking east to Fifth Avenue and leaving south.

While Sandpoint fire and police responded to the scene within minutes of the fire being reported, heavy smoke was already pouring from the gabled southern end of the building. Shortly after fire crews arrived, flames could be seen breaking through the roof of the fire.

"Once it went through the roof, it was clear we weren't going to be going inside," Sandpoint Fire Chief Gavin Gilcrease said the day after the fire, noting the building's different uses and compartmentalization over the years, which added to the challenges faced by crews in fighting the fire.

Challenges forced by the fire made it too dangerous to enter the fire, forcing firefighters to surround the building. Crews worked through the night to bring the fire, which was still spurting flame more than 12 hours after it was reported, under control due to the creosote-treated timbers. Such timbers were which was commonly used in the 19th century and the early 20th century, to preserve and prolong the life of timber supports. 

The oldest section of the 16,000-square-foot building, which sits across Fifth Avenue from Umpqua Bank to the east, dates back to 1915, while the back western section was built in 1945, and the section fronting Fifth Avenue was built in 1955.

The fire is the first major fire since Sandpoint Fire pulled out of the Selkirk Fire Association and the first since a February 2019 blaze gutted two buildings on First Avenue and heavily damaged a third. Five businesses were housed in the buildings gutted by the fire, with a church occupying the heavily damaged third building. 

While the case of that fire was later determined to be accidental, the 2019 blaze forced several businesses to close and others to relocate, some many months or longer after they were displaced.

Coon thanked the community for its support and for helping the department in its investigation as it worked toward identifying and arrest of a suspect.

"We appreciate the continued partnership we have with our community," he said.

Anyone who spoke to Meyer on July 4, or who may have information connected to the case, is asked to contact Sandpoint Police at 208-265-1482. The investigation is ongoing.

    Flames and smoke can be seen billowing out of the Army Surplus building in downtown Sandpoint late Thursday evening. The building was a total loss, Sandpoint Fire officials said Friday.
  

    Army Surplus owner Cornel Rasor, left, is escorted to the front of what remains of his business by a Sandpoint firefighter Friday after the building was destroyed in a July 4 fire.