VIDEO/PHOTOS: The Reno Fire Department fights hundreds of fires each year. There's a team focused on the dozens of fires that are intentionally set.
Arson cases are the least often, least effectively prosecuted criminal offenses in America even though they are the largest dollar loss crime, exceeding burglaries, thefts and armed robberies combined, according to the interFire website.
Out of the 250 to 300 fires in Reno each year, about 50 of them are arson.
Nationally, the prosecution rate is between 1% and 3% for arson fires. Tray Palmer, the fire marshal for the Reno Fire Department said Reno has a 20% prosecution rate. He says there's a reason the city's rates are higher. The four arson investigators are certified police officers meaning they carry guns and have the ability to make arrests.
"They’re police officers as well as fire inspectors," said Palmer.