Roger Solomon told authorities he was trying to get help after a robbery when he set the Saturday night fire that injured 10 people at a Fulton County hotel.
Police weren’t buying it.
“We are not sure what actually happened,” Fulton police Lt. Scott McBride said Monday, “but his statements and the physical evidence did not add up.”
Solomon, 42, was arrested Saturday and charged with arson and two counts of aggravated assault in connection with the Saturday evening fire at the Days Inn on the 3900 block of Fulton Industrial Boulevard. A total of 10 people, including a Fulton County firefighter, were taken to the hospital in the aftermath of the fire, which was contained to a single room.
A Fulton County police incident report said police were led to Solomon, who was at a gas station near the hotel, by a witness who spotted him leaving the scene. Solomon reportedly told authorities that he had set the fire after an attempted robbery, but Fulton police Lt. Scott McBride said “there was nothing to corroborate his story at all.”
“He advised he first lit a match and held a piece of paper up to the fire alarm, so someone would call police,” the incident report said. “He advised no one ever called the police so he lit a blanket on fire and threw the room’s television out the window. He advised he then jumped out the window, landing on his feet. He advised he thought some unknown people were waiting on him.”
Solomon is being held at the Fulton County jail without bond.
Most of the those treated following the fire were complaining only of “lacerations and some smoke inhalation,” according to the incident report. The injured firefighter was expected to be “fine,” authorities said previously.
About the Author
