A San Mateo man accused of setting six fires throughout Belmont and San Mateo in early September picked up an additional charge for another arson that occurred the same day, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.
Nicholas Elward, 32, admitted to prosecutors he set a fire on Interstate 280 on Sept. 8 and Cal Fire submitted a report that a fire that occurred around 4 a.m. on the same day off of Ralston Avenue exit on the interstate was reported as an arson. Elward was spotted walking north on Interstate 280 and in possession of items linking him to fires that occurred earlier in the night in Belmont and San Mateo, according to the DA’s Office.
At about 3:40 a.m. Friday, Sept. 8, a Belmont police officer on patrol noticed a strong odor of smoke and found it coming from an abandoned gas station at the corner of Hill Street at El Camino Real. During an area check, a grass fire was located on the north side of Ralston Avenue at Christian Drive. While San Mateo Consolidated Fire and Cal Fire responded and began to extinguish the fire, Belmont officers located an additional fire in the center median of State Route 92 just west of Ralston Avenue. While officers conducted an area check for the suspect, a fire was found in the center median of Interstate 280 near the State Route 92 interchange, according to police.
San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said the DA’s Office was just waiting for Cal Fire to submit the report to confirm it was an arson before charging Elward.
Elward pleaded not guilty to the latest arson charge Friday, Sept. 18.
He is charged with nine counts of arson and faces around 15 years in state prison. He returns to court Sept. 25 for a preliminary hearing for both cases, according to the DA’s Office
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