A 32-year-old man accused of trying to set a local Safeway supermarket on fire is being held in Thurston County jail in lieu of $40,000 bail.
Lacey police arrested Robert Scott Brewer early Monday morning outside the Safeway at 4700 Yelm Highway SE. Brewer attended his preliminary appearance in Superior Court Monday afternoon and prosecutors charged him with first-degree arson on Tuesday.
In setting the bail amount on Monday, Court Commissioner Nathan Kortokrax concluded there was a risk Brewer would fail to appear as required, commit a violent crime or interfere with the case.
Brewer's criminal history dates to 2009, according to court documents. Notably, he pleaded guilty to first-degree arson in Kitsap County Superior Court in 2018 and second-degree reckless burning in Pierce County Superior Court in 2020.
An affidavit of probable cause includes a report describing Brewer's arrest from the perspective of law enforcement.
Just after 2 a.m. Monday, a Lacey police officer responded to a suspicious person call from the Safeway on Yelm Highway, according to the report.
The caller told dispatch that a man behind Safeway was actively lighting some trash on fire, according to court documents.
When the officer arrived at the scene, the report says they observed a burning wooden pallet propped up against the main electrical power box for the Safeway. A man, later identified as Brewer, stood next to the fire, looking down at it, the report alleges.
"I didn't start this fire," Brewer allegedly told the officer. "I'm just standing here."
The report says Brewer attempted to walk away but the officer detained him without incident. As the officer waited for backup, Brewer reportedly lit his own cigarette with a lighter he retrieved from his pocket.
Once an additional officer arrived, the report says the first officer put out the flames with a fire extinguisher. Brewer identified himself with a Department of Correction identification card, according to the report.
The officer quickly learned Brewer already had a DOC warrant for first-degree arson, and arrested him on the spot.
The night manager at the Safeway reportedly told the officer that there were about seven employees inside the business at the time of the incident and they were unaware that a fire had been started.
Brewer is scheduled to be arraigned on Aug. 17.
