Credit: NYT
Authorities in Vermont arrested a man they said used an accelerant and a lighter to start a fire Friday outside the Burlington office of US Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.
The man, Shant Soghomonian (also known as Michael Soghomonian), 35, previously of Northridge, California, was arrested Sunday on a charge of using fire to damage the building at One Church Street in Burlington, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Vermont said in a statement Sunday.
Prosecutors and police did not identify a possible motive for the fire. The office said a lawyer for Soghomonian had not yet been identified. Officials did not provide a current address for Soghomonian.
On Friday morning, according to prosecutors and the Burlington Police Department, Soghomonian walked into the vestibule of the Sanders' office, where a security camera captured him as he sprayed an "apparent accelerant" near the outer door of the office.
Soghomonian then used a lighter, and "a blaze quickly began" as he fled via a staircase, prosecutors said. The blaze set off the building's sprinklers on multiple floors.
The sprinklers extinguished the fire before firefighters arrived around 10:45 a.m, police said.
Sanders' office was occupied at the time by multiple employees. It was not known how many other people were in the building at the time, but no injuries were reported, authorities said.
Sanders was not in his office at the time of the fire, his office said in a statement Friday.
"A special thank you to Burlington Police Department detectives, agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, as well as the U.S. Attorney's Office for the integral role they played in bringing swift resolution to this investigation," Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak said in a statement.
An initial court appearance has not been scheduled for Soghomonian.
If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, prosecutors said.