Sioux Falls ‘seems’ to have a pyromaniac in our midst

While I don’t usually comment on criminal activity in SF that much on my site, this is beginning to concern me;

Two vehicles and a garage were found on fire early Sunday in an area north of downtown that has been plagued by vehicle and garage fires.

Sioux Falls Fire Rescue responded at 2:30 a.m. to a reported vehicle fire near a building at 1200 N. Dakota Ave. Later, a garage fire was extinguished at 1220 N. Main Ave.

An Oct. 8 article in the Argus Leader noted that firefighters had responded to the same neighborhood southeast of Minnesota Avenue and Russell Street at least seven times in six weeks for car or garage fires.

The scary part about a pyromaniac is that they progress from starting small fires to much bigger fires, sometimes resulting in harm or death. They are also known to be younger;

Individual factors that can lead to pyromania mainly deal with personal issues in someones life. This category includes adolescents who have committed crimes in the past. For example, 19% of adolescents suffering from pyromania have been charged with vandalism and 18% are nonviolent sexual offenders. Other causes may include the seeking of attention from authorities or parents and resolving social issues such as bullying or lack of friends (Frey 2001). Another cause may be that the patient is subconsciously seeking revenge for something that has occurred in the past (Oliver).

Usually I would let the SF Fire Department and SF police department solve this all on their lonesomes, but we should all keep an eye out for this perp, it is only going to get worse until they are caught. I also think the FD and PD need to do a better job of informing the public about what someone like this is capable of AND the warning signs if they think they are living with someone like this.