Crime & Safety
Bear Fire Arson Suspect Arrested
Marlon Coy, 54, a resident of the Boulder Creek was arrested last week on charges of looting and burglarizing a home during the blaze.
SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CA — A 54-year-old man who was arrested last week on charges of looting and burglarizing a home during the Bear Fire in unincorporated Santa Cruz County has been charged today with starting the blaze, also, according to the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office.
Sheriff's officials said today that Marlon Coy, 54, a resident of the Boulder Creek area in unincorporated Santa Cruz County, was charged with multiple felony counts of arson. One of the counts - arson causing great
bodily injury - is enhanced by three counts for great bodily injury to firefighting personnel.
According to sheriff's officials, the fire started in the 400 block of Diane's Way in Boulder Creek on the night of Monday, Oct. 16 around 10:30 p.m. Deputies arriving on the scene received information that Coy was
seen with other men in the area at the time of the fire, and was determined to be a person of interest.
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After Coy was arrested for looting a home inside the evacuation area on Oct. 18, he denied starting the fire during that investigation. He allegedly took $15,000 worth of property - mostly jewelry and a bicycle -
from a residence in the 19000 block of Hidden Valley Lane. Coy was allegedly found with the stolen property later in the day in the city of Santa Cruz.
In the days following, however, sheriff's detectives said they were able to talk to all but one of the men who were allegedly with Coy at the time the fire started, and all gave sheriff's officials detailed statements implicating Coy in the blaze.
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Sheriff's officials said Coy set the blaze in response to a dispute with a woman he was dating named Julia Cabibi who owned a property near where the blaze ignited. Cabibi's home was destroyed in the fire.
Sheriff's officials said they would like to speak to her but that she is not a suspect in the case.
The Bear Fire, which was fully extinguished today, burned 331 acres, injured 13 firefighters, destroyed two homes, five RVs and 17 vehicles, according to sheriff's officials.
Anyone with information on the case or of Cabibi's whereabouts is asked to call the Santa Cruz Sheriff's Office at (831) 471-1121.
By Bay City News
Photo courtesy Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office
