Man accused of setting trucks on fire at Home Depot

Next to his 23 convictions, the man was charged with second-degree arson.

A Tacoma man was charged with arson for allegedly setting a pair of trucks on fire at Home Depot in Federal Way.

Christopher Michael Insko, 44, whose last known address was in Tacoma, was charged with first-degree arson on May 14, after he allegedly set a Penske box truck and a U-Haul truck on fire at Home Depot on May 12. According to charging documents, multiple witnesses saw the trucks catch on fire, then saw Insko run away from them while he was also on fire.

According to the King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention jail look-up portal, Insko is being held at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent on an $80,000 bail. Documents state that Insko has eight felony convictions and 15 misdemeanor convictions. According to King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office spokesperson Casey McNerthney, Insko’s next court hearing on May 28 is an arraignment, where an initial plea is entered.

Details of the incident

At about 8:44 a.m. May 12 officers responded to a fire in progress at the Home Depot parking lot, 1715 S. 352nd St. Documents stated that while Federal Way Police Department (FWPD) officers were en route to the location, a Washington State Patrol (WSP) trooper was on scene, and a man was detained in connection with the fire.

Documents stated that a FWPD officer arrived and observed a heavily damaged Penske box truck and a U-Haul, which South King Fire was actively extinguishing. According to documents, the WSP trooper on-scene told the officer that he had seen smoke and responded. The officer said that subsequently, a security guard told him that Insko was fleeing the area toward the U-Haul parking lot, and his sleeves were on fire.

The trooper then located Insko, detained him and noticed he smelled like gas and his sleeves appeared to be burned. Documents stated that Insko was also equipped with a backpack that was wet and smelled like petroleum.

Two other witnesses had also seen Insko run away from the trucks right after the fire started. One witness said that right after the fire started, they saw Insko running around the U-Haul, and his leg or boot was on fire, documents stated.

According to documents, Insko had redness on multiple parts of his body, which officers believed could have been caused by burns. He additionally had burnt hair on his arms, and his hands appeared to be black and ashy.