LAPD arrests 31-year-old man for setting flag on fire at West Hills home
WEST HILLS, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Police have arrested a man in connection with the intentional burning of an American flag at a home in West Hills. The flames spread to the property's lawn before a neighbor was able to get them under control with a garden hose.
The incident happened Saturday night. Surveillance video shows a man walking toward the flag in front of the home on Welby Way, lighting it on fire and walking away.
Investigators were considering the possibility of a hate crime because the homeowner is Jewish.
But police say the suspect, 31-year-old Kevin Miller was not motivated by hate.
Miller was arrested around 10:45 p.m. Monday. He was booked at Van Nuys jail for arson of an inhabited dwelling and bail was set at $250,000.
Police say Miller does not have prior arrests for arson. His possible motive for setting the fire was not disclosed in an LAPD statement.
Nobody was home at the time of the blaze, but the homeowner spotted the flames after receiving a notification from her Ring camera.
She immediately called 911, but the fire had already spread to the lawn. Fortunately, a neighbor jumped into action.
"I saw the hose there and thank God it was right there... I pulled it as far as I could and I was able to put my thumb over it and start squirting at it... And then I went up on the roof and I just kept going and going and going until I didn't see any flames anymore," said the neighbor, Jeff.
The homeowner and the neighbor who put out the fire had not met until this incident. Residents described the neighborhood as a tight-knit community where everybody is willing to help each other.
