MILWAUKEE — One person is in custody after a fire at Milwaukee Area Technical College‘s (MATC) downtown student center.
Surveillance footage showed around 6:40 a.m. on May 13, an individual “appeared to intentionally set a chair on fire on the third floor of the Student Center (S building) on MATC’s Downtown Milwaukee Campus”. Once the fire alarms were activated, the building was evacuated.
Two MATC employees quickly extinguished the fire, but not before the fire activated the sprinkler system, causing water damage throughout the S building. The building was closed for use while other buildings and classes continued.
At 2:15 p.m., MATC’s Public Safety team released the following image of the suspect, describing him as a Black male, approximately 5’8” tall and 30 years old, with medium build, short black hair, carrying a green or blue backpack with a navy stripe down the front and wearing a black jacket, blue jeans and black and red flip flops/slide shoes with black socks.
The suspect was spotted by an MATC employee around 3:30 p.m. near 9th and State Street and arrested by the Milwaukee Police Department for the alleged arson.
MATC’s S Building remains closed on May 14 for continued cleanup.
