Portland authorities seeking person who was near city councilor’s home during fire

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Portland authorities are asking the public’s help in their investigation into a fire that happened near a city councilor’s home this past weekend.

The Portland Police Bureau and Portland Fire and Rescue said investigators wish to speak to an individual who may have more information about the fire that occurred in the Mill Park Neighborhood near Councilor Candace Avalos’ home in the early morning of October 26.

The person seen in a surveillance video released by the Portland Police Bureau is not considered a suspect, authorities said.

“Investigators simply hope to learn more about what they might have seen or heard in the area,” PPB said in a press release.

On Monday, Portland police and the fire department announced investigators could not “definitively determine the exact cause of the fire.” However, they said they found no evidence that Councilor Avalos’ home was specifically targeted in the fire.

Though the fire damaged the home, car, and carport of Councilor Avalos, and was initially investigated as a possible arson, it was later determined that the fire did not start at her home.

The police and fire department later said the fire likely began in a storage shed next to the home, with other residents also affected by the spread of the fire that happened in the Mill Park Neighborhood. In addition, there was no evidence of an accelerant or incendiary device specifically targeting Councilor Avalos. However, the investigators are still trying to determine the cause of the fire.

Investigators want to talk to the individual seen in the surveillance video in hopes that they may have information on how the fire began.

If anyone has information about the person in the video, they’re asked to contact Portland police.