SF Police Arrest Arsonist

Feb 12, 2022

San Francisco police arrested a man on Saturday they said assaulted someone with a deadly weapon and lit a house on fire in Clarion Alley.

Mathis Smith, 34, of San Francisco, was arrested at 3:15 p.m. on suspicion of three counts of assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of resisting a police officer, delaying or obstructing an investigation, arson-related charges and a probation violation, said police spokesperson Officer Lanvin Parsi.

At 10:32 p.m., police officers responded to 911 calls and reports of someone screaming in the paint covered tourist attraction, where police said they found Smith armed with a shotgun. Parsi said the suspect was "known to the officers that made prior contact with him" and believe Smith to have been motivated by the same "substance-related incidents" that have inspired his previous convictions.

Police said Smith ran away, prompting officers to search area around Valencia, Guerrero and 17th streets and ask people to steer clear.

While officers were combing area, SFFD dispatched a two-alarm fire at a two-story, detached single-family residential structure at 30 Clarion Alley.

SFPD reported on Flitter that officers "took the suspect into custody while doing a search within the perimeter."