Arson

Authorities are investigating a fire at A+A Graphics as arson, officials said. The store sustained $200,000 in damage Monday, as a fire raged through two buildings on its property, officials said. The fire began about 6:45 p.m. at the business in the 3800 block of Ocean View Boulevard. No one was inside the building at the time of the fire, Sgt. Stefanie Fredericks said. The fire was extinguished about 7:10 p.m. Officials are investigating the fire as arson because it appeared the blaze started in several places, said Battalion Chief Ernie Golphenee of Los Angeles County Fire Station 82. Janine Marnien

Robert Chacon Next month a Superior Court Judge will decide how much more time a La Crescenta man can have to prepare for his trial on charges of trying to burn down his neighbor's home. The case against Gary Glazier slowed significantly when he decided to hire a new attorney. Glazier's attorney, Robert Shapiro, said he needed a "significant amount of time" to review the charges and evidence compiled against his client. "Honestly, we don't know enough about the case, and we need time to review," Shapiro said.

Antranik Khajarian's attorney argues for manslaughter in murder trial.PASADENA -- Jurors will begin deliberating today in the trial against a Glendale man accused of setting fire to his grandmother's room and killing her last March. Antranik Khajarian, 38, faces one count of murder with special circumstances of arson, one count of arson causing great bodily injury, one count of arson to an inhabited structure and one count of possession of flammable material, said Sandi Gibbons, spokeswoman with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Gary Glazier, of La Crescenta, is on trial for attempted murder, accused of twice setting fire to neighbor's home. FOR THE RECORD In Tuesday's article "Evidence grim in arson trial" and Wednesday's "Witness' words are questioned," the counts against Gary Glazier were listed incorrectly. He is charged with four counts of attempted murder, two counts of arson, one count of burglary and one count of possession of a flammable device. PASADENA -- Prosecutors presented evidence Monday that they say links a 62-year-old La Crescenta man charged with attempted murder to two fires set at his neighbor's home.

Testimony is expected to begin Monday in the trial of a 37-year-old Glendale man accused of killing his 94-year-old grandmother in March, when he allegedly set her room on fire, Pasadena Superior Court officials said. Antranik Khajarian faces one count of murder with special circumstances of arson, two counts of arson and one count of possessing flammable material for allegedly dousing Arpine Demerjian's room with gasoline, then setting it on fire. Demerjian died of smoke inhalation and burns.

Darleene Barrientos Investigators are calling a car fire an arson-related incident after several calls reported an explosion, a Glendale Police sergeant said. Several 911 calls to the department reported a possible traffic accident about 6:40 a.m. Sunday in the 2500 block of East Chevy Chase Drive, Glendale Police spokesman Sgt. Kirk Palmer said. Officers found what appeared to be a late-model, four-door BMW fully engulfed in flames. Witnesses reported hearing an explosion prior to finding the car on fire.

A man whose Glendale family reported him missing the night before he allegedly set fire to a brush-filled canyon in Angeles National Forest pleaded not guilty to arson and other charges Thursday in Pasadena Superior Court. Dikran Armouchian, 23, was found by hikers as he allegedly was building a fire in Eaton Canyon in Altadena on Oct. 28, the same week that fires scorched millions of acres around Southern California. Armouchian was standing next to a fire about 4 feet in diameter when Los Angeles County Parks officials and Sheriff's deputies arrived, sheriff's Det. Ed Nordskog said.

Robert Chacon A La Crescenta man accused of setting fire to his neighbor's house does not appear in a surveillance video of the crime, but investigators believe he did it because they found the equipment used in the alleged arson in his home, according to testimony Wednesday in a preliminary hearing. Gary Glazier's preliminary hearing will continue today. Pasadena Superior Court Judge Judson Morris considered testimony from Los Angeles County Sheriff's arson investigators and chemical analysts, and viewed photographs of the burned home, which was allegedly set on fire twice.

Alecia Foster PASADENA -- A Glendale man who set fire to his own home was sentenced Monday to three years in state prison. Faraj Yeretsian was also ordered by a Pasadena Superior Court judge to pay $345,750 in restitution to Farmer's Insurance Co. Authorities said Yeretsian set fire to his home on the 700 block of Cordova, shortly after an argument with his wife on April 11, 1999. The man's wife and two sons were able to flee the house safely, but the family dog died from smoke inhalation.

Authorities across Southern California were beefing up patrols Saturday night, hoping to catch the person or persons responsible for more than 35 fires over the last two days. Los Angeles police and fire officials were trying to determine whether the fires were the work of one arsonist or several. Some officials believe it would be difficult for one person to have set all the fires but have definitely ruled out a lone arsonist, law enforcement sources told The Times. On Friday morning, 21 fires were started in a relatively small area around Hollywood and West Hollywood.

PASADENA — A Pasadena Superior Court judge declared a mistrial Thursday for four of 12 counts against a 46-year-old Glendale man accused of setting fire to his foreclosed home while his wife and children slept inside. Jurors were deadlocked on three counts of attempted murder and one count of arson after deliberating for two days in the trial of Brian Walder, Judge Suzette Clover said in court. Nine jurors voted not guilty, while three voted guilty on the four counts. The forewoman told Clover that the jury voted more than 20 times and continually came up deadlocked on the four counts.

PASADENA — Jury deliberations began Monday evening in the trial of a 46-year-old Glendale man accused of setting his foreclosed home on fire while his wife and two children slept inside. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Suzette Clover instructed jury members Monday that if they could not determine that Brian Walder committed arson with intent, he could not be found guilty of murder. Walder is charged with three counts of attempted murder, child endangerment, contempt of court and arson for allegedly setting fire to his patio on the 1600 block of West Mountain Street just after 3 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008, while his family slept inside.

PASADENA — The trial of a Glendale man who police say set his foreclosed home on fire while his wife and two young daughters slept got underway this week, with an arson investigator testifying Tuesday that he smelled gasoline at the scene of the January 2008 blaze. Brian Walder, 46, is charged with three counts of attempted murder, child endangerment and arson for allegedly setting fire to his foreclosed home on the 1600 block of West Mountain Street on Jan. 24, 2008, while his wife and children were sleeping, police said.

GLENDALE — Authorities have determined that the Station fire, which caused the death of two firefighters and sent hundreds of residents and animals seeking shelter, was caused by arson. An official at the Interagency Command Center confirmed that an arson investigation had been opened, but referred all other inquires to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Steve Whitmore, who could not be reached for comment Thursday evening. The determination likely meant that the death Sunday of two county firefighters, whose vehicle overturned on a steep roadway in the Angeles National Forest within the fire zone, would be considered a homicide.

GLENDALE — Authorities have determined that the Station fire, which caused the death of two firefighters and sent hundreds of residents and animals seeking shelter, was caused by arson. An official at the Interagency Command Center confirmed that an arson investigation had been opened, but referred all other inquires to Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Steve Whitmore, who could not be reached for comment Thursday evening. The determination likely meant that the death of two county firefighters Sunday, whose vehicle overturned on steep roadway in the Angeles National Forest within the fire zone, would be considered a homicide.

GRIFFITH PARK ? Brush fires that consumed about 50 acres in Griffith Park on Saturday were largely contained Sunday afternoon as arson investigators worked to determine their cause. The blazes ? first reported near Travel Town in the northeast portion of the park ? were mostly out by Saturday evening after park rangers spotted the initial fire at about 2 p.m.. Fire crews remained on site overnight to monitor hot spots and keep an eye out for flare-ups. Glendale and Burbank fire departments sent a combined five engines to assist in the firefighting effort that at one point saw 300 firefighters from six agencies participating.

LOS ANGELES — Jurors on Tuesday ruled that Juan Manuel Alvarez should spend the rest of his life in prison, forgoing a death sentence for his role in a deadly 2005 train derailment. Alvarez, 29, smiled after Court Clerk Alberta Jordan read the verdict from the nine-woman, three-man panel that on June 26 found the former construction worker guilty of 11 counts of first-degree murder and one count of arson. Jurors took less than four hours to return the sentence, which precludes Alvarez from seeking parole.