A man has been charged with arson in relation to a fire that caused over one million dollars in damages.
Vancouver firefighters responded to a three-alarm blaze at a South Vancouver home at 4700 Argyle Street in the evening of Dec. 16, 2022.
Five fires broke out around the city that day.
The flames destroyed the residential house which was under construction and caused extensive damage to neighbouring homes on both sides.
"Despite more than one million dollars in damages, no one was injured in the blaze," says Cnst. Tania Visintin of the Vancouver Police Department (VPD).
Following an investigation by the VPD, Force Mclellan Forsythe, 37, has been charged on May 9 with one count of arson with disregard for life.
Forsythe is no stranger to the B.C. court system; records show Forsythe has an extensive adult criminal record going back nearly 20 years.
In 2016, Forsythe was handed an 18-month jail sentence in North Vancouver provincial court for assault causing bodily harm for an incident in which he soccer-kicked a stranger in the head because he thought he was being disrespected by a person with brown skin. Previous convictions include ones for charges of uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm, theft with a value of $5000 or under, robbery, and breach of probation.
His next court appearance is on June 26.
With additional reporting by Lindsay William-Ross and a file from Jane Seyd/North Shore News
