ANAHEIM, Calif. – Police have arrested a man they say fought with a gas station clerk and then set the station on fire.
Anaheim police were called to the Chevron early Monday morning for a report that someone was trying to set gas pumps on fire, KTLA reported.
The clerk told investigators the suspect had been acting suspiciously before he took off his shirt and set fire to it, KNBC reported.
Investigators say that before officers arrived, the clerk went to confront the suspect. However, the suspect then chased the clerk into the store where the two got into a fight, KTTV reported. That fight led to a fire near the cash register in the store, KNBC reported.
“It felt useless for me to fight him and I broke away and ran outside the store. That’s when the store caught on fire,” Tuan Nguyen, the clerk, told KTLA. Police arrived as Nguyen ran out and allegedly saw the suspect setting the outside of the gas station on fire, the station reported.
Police had to use a Taser stun gun on the suspect to get him into custody before taking him to the hospital, where he was treated before being booked, KTTV reported.
The clerk suffered minor smoke inhalation, but is expected to be OK, KNBC reported.
