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Apartment fire in DC was caused by explosive device, officials say
Investigators say a massive apartment fire that broke out in D.C. on Valentine’s Day was caused by a man who set off an explosive device inside. FOX 5’s Sydney Persing is outside of that apartment building tonight with the brand-new details and photos from investigators.
WASHINGTON - Investigators say a massive apartment fire that broke out in D.C. on Valentine’s Day was caused by a man who set off an explosive device inside.
A massive blaze:
The windows of this northeast apartment building are still boarded up nearly a month after this fire. More than a dozen people remain displaced, including several children.
Investigators say they believe it was all caused by a man with an explosive device.
The building at 1424 Eastern Avenue caught on fire just before 5 p.m. on Feb. 14. .
Police say Deyon Hampton, Jr. caused it. He has been charged with maliciously damaging commercial property using fire or explosives.
Photos released in an affidavit show extensive damage done not just to the exterior of the building but also to an apartment inside of it.
In the affidavit, investigators reveal that the fire did the most damage to a single apartment unit and that there were two people inside of it at the time
Those victims reported hearing an explosion just before the fire, and according to the document, that explosion was so intense that one of their arms even ended up with shrapnel lodged in it.
Dig deeper:
While investigators didn’t release a motive in this document, the affidavit does appear to reveal that the suspect knew the victims in that apartment somehow, that he sometimes even stayed there, once for up to a month.
One of the victim’s friends also reported seeing Hampton leave the building just after the explosion and asking him what happened.
That friend claimed that Hampton smiled and said something like he "got them" before he got away.
In an interview from the hospital, one of the victims told police that Hampton had displayed a solid colored tube-shaped item just before the explosion, and said that he indicated it was "dynamite."
What's next:
The fire displaced 12 adults, three children and a cat that was rescued by firefighters.
We may learn more about a possible motive in the coming days.
Hampton is scheduled for a detention hearing on Friday, but until then, he will remain behind bars.