A 54 year old man from Chipewyan Prairie First Nation is facing an arson charge after a fire destroyed a residence in the community south of Fort McMurray last week.
On April 15, around 4:15 p.m., Wood Buffalo RCMP and Regional Emergency Services responded to calls about a grass and residential fire on Lot 159 of the First Nation near Janvier. When crews arrived, the home was fully engulfed in flames.
According to police, witnesses saw a man pouring fluid around the property before lighting it on fire. The suspect remained at the scene and was arrested without incident.
There were no injuries reported, and no one was inside the residence at the time of the fire.
Brian Cardinal, a resident of the First Nation, has been charged with one count of arson. He was held for a judicial interim hearing and later released on conditions. He is scheduled to appear in the Alberta Court of Justice in Fort McMurray on May 7.
Police are asking anyone with information about this incident or any other suspicious activity in the area to contact the RCMP.
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