Clark County Sheriff’s Office deputies and other law enforcement officials arrested a suspect Friday in Portland believed to be connected to a Christmas Eve burglary and arson in Hockinson.
The sheriff’s office said Friday morning that the arrest happened with the help of the Portland Police Bureau, the Vancouver Police Department and U.S. Marshals Service.
Multiple agencies responded to the Embassy Suites on Northeast 82nd Avenue in Portland at 12:30 a.m., but Clark County Sgt. Pete Muller said deputies had tracked two suspects to the hotel several hours earlier, and they were surveilling the area since that time.
During the stakeout, the second suspect slipped off; it is believed the man was unaware of the police presence, Muller said.
As the deputies called in backup, people coming to and from the area noticed the goings-on and began filming with their cellphones and alerting media, Muller said.
A release sent out later Friday from the sheriff’s office reported that the apprehended suspect “was located entering a hotel room” at the location off Airport Way around 3 a.m.
“Detectives with the Portland Police Bureau’s Robbery Details have since responded to the hotel to write a search warrant,” the sheriff’s office said.
Muller identified the arrested suspect as Joshua Adam Roland and the wanted suspect as Dan Cronin Jr. The sergeant, who had been investigating the case for more than 24 hours straight and was off-duty, did not know their ages.
Deputies previously confirmed the burglary and fire happened at a home on Northeast 119th Street in Hockinson.
A family member said in an email that they had returned home from a Christmas Eve church service and found the home had been broken into and set on fire.
Jamon Holmgren said in an email that after parking his vehicle in the garage, he opened the door into the house and was met by a wall of dark gray smoke.
“I immediately shouted to my wife to get the kids out and they ran into the yard,” Holmgren said. “We backed the vehicles out of the garage and called 911.”
Holmgren did a circuit around the house to check for flames, he said, but saw only “dark smoke swirling in all of the windows.”
Firefighters quickly arrived and entered the home, finding a gas can sitting in the entryway, Holmgren said. That’s when the family realized it could have been arson, he said.
The home’s surveillance system recorded two men entering the home — footage that was widely shared on social media.
“We reviewed footage from our security camera and discovered that about an hour prior, a red car had pulled into our drive, backed up to our garage, and two men got out and went around back of the house,” Holmgren said.
With the fire extinguished, the family was let back into the house. They discovered computers and other electronics were missing.
The Holmgrens have been in contact with the sheriff’s office, who told them last week detectives were pursuing solid leads. Community members have been helpful in sharing tips with authorities and the family, too.
Having only lived in the house since May 2015, the family said it’s working to have it restored to its normal state. They’re currently staying with friends and family, but will probably end up in a rental for months, they said.
“It’s just senseless, that they would light an entire house on fire to cover up stealing a few computers and tablets,” Holmgren said.
Deputies said the outstanding suspect, Cronin Jr., is believed to be armed and dangerous.
“No additional information is available at this time due to the investigation being still active and evolving,” the sheriff’s office said.
