Full Notification

Nature of Incident: Arson of a Structure
Report Number: 152044742
Location: Planned Parenthood 1200 W. Hillcrest Drive in Thousand Oaks
Date & Time: Wednesday, September 30th at approximately 11:30 PM
Unit(s) Responsible: Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Arson Unit, Major Crimes Unit and Ventura County Fire Department Arson Investigation Unit

(S)uspects, (V)ictims, (P)arty, (D)ecedent City of Residence Age
Unknown

Narrative:
On 9/30/15, at about 11:30 PM, Ventura County Fire Department personnel were dispatched to a commercial fire alarm at the Planned Parenthood building, which is located at 1200 W. Hillcrest Drive in Thousand Oaks. Upon their arrival, Fire Department personnel found the building’s fire sprinkler system activated. Thousand Oaks Patrol personnel were also dispatched to the location and arrived seconds later. During the initial inspection of the scene by patrol deputies and firefighters it was believed the fire was suspicious. At that time, arson investigators for both the Sheriff’s Office and Ventura County Fire Department were summoned to the scene.

After a thorough inspection of the fire scene, investigators determined an unknown suspect wearing clothing to protect his identity crudely threw a large piece of masonry through a window on the south side of the building. The suspect then introduced a flammable liquid into the broken window and used an open flame to ignite the flammable liquid. Within a minute, the building’s fire sprinkler system was activated and extinguished the fire. The fire was contained to a small area of one office, but there was a large amount of water damage to the floor area of the first floor. Based on the evidence at the scene, investigators have been able to establish the cause of the fire as arson.

The suspect’s motive is unknown and investigators are asking the public for their assistance. Anyone with information regarding this fire is encouraged to contact Detective Michael Rompal at (805) 383-8743 or [email protected]. Anyone who wishes to remain anonymous can contact Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-TIPS (8477).

Prepared by: Detective Michael Rompal
News Release Date: October 1st, 2015
Media Follow-Up Contact: Senior Deputy Tim Lohman (805) 947-8255 or [email protected]
Captain John Reilly (805) 947-6782 or [email protected]
Approved by: Captain Todd Inglis

Ventura County Crime Stoppers will pay up to $1,000 reward for information, which leads to the arrest and criminal complaint against the person(s) responsible for this crime. The caller may remain anonymous. The call is not recorded. Call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).