Deputies
arrested a 21-year-old man and charged him with setting fire to a Collier
County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigation van Friday morning.
Colton
Michael Smith, 2793 Inlet Cove Lane West, Golden Gate Estates, was booked into
the Collier County jail on a felony charge of arson.
Detectives
say Smith set fire to the CCSO CSI van while it was parked in a residential
community in Golden Gate Estates shortly before 3:45 a.m.
Smith was
arrested after deputies spotted him riding a bicycle in the vicinity of the
fire during the early hours of the morning. Upon making contact with Smith,
deputies could smell a strong odor of gasoline emitting from Smith and his
clothing.
According to
arrest reports, deputies found a white locking cap in Smith’s left front
pocket. The cap had a strong odor of gasoline. The cap also matched and fit a
clear plastic bottle located at the scene. The bottle was located approximately
30 feet from the CSI van and had a burn trail through the grass leading up to
the van. The bottle smelled strongly of gasoline.
