By Anna Walters
A man was taken into police custody Saturday morning after allegedly setting fire to a house rented to four UP students.
On Saturday at 7:58 a.m., the fire department received a call that a house on the corner of North Saratoga Street and North Willamette Boulevard was on fire. The department arrived at the scene, 3347 N. Willamette Blvd., and called the fire investigation branch.
Robert Wayne Austin, 48, was taken into police custody under suspicion of arson. He was arraigned Monday on various arson charges, according to Lt. Dave Centres, public information officer for Portland Fire & Rescue.
The house Austin allegedly set fire to is privately owned and currently rented to seniors Brady Shinn, Rob Vandermeulen and Shaun Ghyselinck, and junior Tony Garagliano.
According to Shinn, Austin is a neighbor that lives three houses down and came, uninvited, to a social gathering the students hosted on Friday night before the incident.
"We had never met him before," Shinn said. "He seemed kind of messed up mentally. He was incoherent - that's what we told the police."
Shinn said that Austin was asked to leave after he became aggressive and made threats, claiming that someone had stolen his Rascal, a motorized scooter typically used by persons with limited mobility.
The renters contacted Public Safety. Public Safety offered to contact the Portland Police Bureau (PPB), and the renters agreed.
While waiting for PPB and Public Safety to arrive, Austin allegedly punched two students in the face, and the renters called Public Safety a second time urging it to respond immediately.
Public Safety arrived first and subdued Austin, and PPB was on the scene within minutes, Shinn said.
"Portland Police hauled him off to detox," Shinn said. "He was screaming about his scooter the entire time."
Shinn said he awoke the next morning to the smell of gasoline. Garagliano heard a sound like a bonfire being lit and went outside to find the side of the house on fire.
Garagliano was able to prevent the fire from spreading by dousing it with a nearby garden hose.
He also noticed Austin on the property and yelled at him to leave.
Portland Fire & Rescue arrived shortly after and Austin was taken into custody. He is being held on $1 million bail, and a grand jury hearing is scheduled for Friday.
Portland Fire & Rescue was unable to release the details of his case at press time.
Shinn said that the house still smells like gasoline as of Wednesday morning.
Physical damage to the house and charred ground resulted from the fire. The renters have contacted their landlord, who is being very supportive, Shinn said.
Repair costs have yet to be estimated.
Ghyselinck said he is still in shock over the incident.
"I didn't think that this type of thing really happened," he said.
