The investigation of the Jan. 30 structure fire at Moses Lake Liquor & Wine is ongoing, but Moses Lake police confirmed the cause as robbery and arson.
“It was a break-in, and (robbers) stole cash from the office area and then they used gasoline and torched the building,” said store owner Mike Ventura.
Police are still looking into suspects and motives, Moses Lake Police Chief Kevin Fuhr said. At this time little is known, but police suspect it was a robbery and break-in.
The incident at 1180 N. Stratford Road is very unusual, Fuhr said.
“The arsons we have are either (in) fields, stuff like that, maybe fireworks-related, things like that,” he said. “But not like this.”
Ventura first purchased the liquor store at 933 N. Stratford Road in June 2012, where Sumo Japanese Restaurant currently resides, he said.