San Francisco police arrest suspect in series of arson fires

SFPD says data from 2018 to 2019 shows that crime is down.

Police in San Francisco arrested a man suspected of setting several fires in the city, after an officer spotted him starting one in Alamo Square Park on Wednesday.

Just after midnight, officers followed the suspect into the park, near Pierce and Hayes streets, and witnessed him start a fire against a restroom building and flee. 

Police and firefighters put out the fire. 

Officers then saw the suspect try to start a second fire, and after a brief struggle, officers were able to take him into custody.

Police identified the suspect as Mark Major, 54, of San Francisco, and booked him on suspicion of several arson-related offenses.

Police said Major has been linked to other arson fires, including a Feb. 15 vehicle fire in the 400 block of Hickory Street and a Feb. 21 vehicle fire near Linden and Laguna streets.

Since November, officers with the department's Special Investigations Division Arson Task Force began looking into a series of intentional fires in the city's northeast. Police credit the investigation with Major's arrest.

Major remains in custody and is being held without bail, according to jail records.