Sunday’s blaze at a motorcycle repair shop in Barrie's south end has been deemed arson and police are looking for two suspects, one of whom caught fire as smoke billowed from the building.
City firefighters were called to Hawg Worx, located at 121 Welham Rd., on Sunday at 1:08 a.m.
Barrie police communications co-ordinator Peter Leon told BarrieToday that the investigation is now focused on arson.
“We can confirm it is being treated as arson and it is currently being investigated by detectives from our criminal investigation division,” Leon said. “That decision comes as a result of the investigation conducted by the Office of the Fire Marshal, who were on scene providing assistance.”
A video from a surveillance camera shows two individuals, one of whom is on fire as they are fleeing from the business.
The person on fire was able to extinguish the fire by diving into a ditch that had been filled with rain water, Leon said.
“It would appear that the second person tries to help extinguish the fire, but they catch fire as well,” said Leon. “Somebody is going to have some pretty significant burns to their legs, so if anyone sees that they should contact police or Crime Stoppers.”
A still frame from the video also shows what Leon believes are tear-away pants.
“The pants may jog someone's memory. Maybe they’ve seen somebody with those pants on that night. Any little detail can assist in this investigation,” said Leon. Leon reiterated that anyone with information is asked to contact Barrie Police or Crime Stoppers with anything they can provide.
The investigation is ongoing.
“Obviously, something like this doesn’t happen too often in our community and we want to catch the people responsible for it,” said Leon.
