Man arrested for alleged arson of his own apartment 

On June 19, Olympia Police Department (OPD) officers responded to a fire in an apartment on Franz Anderson Road SE, which the Olympia Fire Department (OFD) reported as appearing intentional.  

The fire originated from the apartment of a man whom first responders accuse of starting the fire.  

Upon arrival, police officers found water flooding the hallway.  

OFD reported that the apartment door was open, with smoke billowing out, while the bathroom door was locked and wired shut.  

Firefighters discovered Christmas lights entangled with a metal broom handle and chemicals on the kitchen stove ignited by lighter fluid. 

“The closet door located in the living room was shut, and there was a pile of clothes on the shelving and floor that were lit on fire,” OPD stated in the police report. The bedroom closet contained no clothing. 

The sprinkler system in the building hallway was activated by the fire in the hall closet.  

When officers checked the apartment building’s surveillance footage, it showed Castillo exiting the building just as the alarm sounded. 

The suspect was apprehended later that day at 3700 Martin Way E.  

The suspect denied starting the fire but admitted to securing his apartment with wires and using chemicals to deter ‘threats’.  

The suspect “stated that he has been wiring cabinets and doors shut because there are people trying to come through the walls, and that people are out to get him, but he could not tell us who is out to get him.” OPD stated based on their interview with the suspect. 

During a body search, police say they found miscellaneous cards smelling of smoke in his possession. 

The suspect was booked into Thurston County Jail on a first-degree arson charge after authorities found probable cause for the intentional setting of fire in his apartment unit, resulting in building damage and safety risk to other residents in the building.