A man was arrested Monday after allegedly setting multiple fires at a LaGrange hospital and attempting to cause an explosion, police said.
Staff at Wellstar West Georgia Medical Center on Vernon Road called police just before 2 a.m. after a fire had been set in a patient’s room, according to a news release from LaGrange police. When officers arrived, they helped hospital staff in subduing the man, identified as James Smith III.
Investigators said Smith purposely started several small fires in the patient room. He had previously told staff that he had a gun and a bomb and let them know that the GBI should be notified “because this was a hostage situation,” the release states. He then turned on the in-room oxygen system and continued lighting fires in an attempt to cause an explosion in the hospital, according to police.
Smith was arrested and faces multiple charges, including aggravated assault, first-degree arson, terroristic threats and battery.
No other details about the incident have been released by police, and the extent of the damage to the hospital was unknown. Smith’s connection to the hospital was not clear.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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