A 38-year-old man police determined was the suspect in a series of large arsons in Ballard, Fremont and Queen Anne late last year was already in a Whatcom County jail on unrelated charges, according to the Seattle Police Department.
Matthew Hooper has been charged with four counts of second degree arson, prosecutors said. Total damage was estimated at $4 million.
"The defendant's extremely dangerous criminal behavior demonstrates he is a danger to the safety of the community," King County Deputy Prosecutor Rhyan Anderson wrote in charging papers.
Seattle Police say Hooper is believed to have set fires to five different businesses between Oct. 28 and Nov. 28 of last year. Prosecutors were especially concerned about the final fire, which was lit in a carport underneath where many nearby apartment residents were sleeping.
"Had the Seattle Fire Department not responded so promptly, the defendant could have burnt down the occupied apartment building where many residents would have still been sleeping," Anderson wrote.