A man has been arrested for attempting to burn down Sen. Bernie Sanders’ (I-VT) Vermont office while staffers were working inside, according to Burlington police.
Shant Soghomonian, 35, was arrested for setting fire to the door of the office and charged with several felonies.
Soghomonian was arrested at a La Quinta Inn in Burlington early Sunday morning after he was recognized from surveillance photos.
He allegedly poured lighter fluid on Sanders’ office door around 10:45 a.m. on Friday morning.
Soghomonian then lit the door on fire as seven of Sanders’ staffers were working inside.
The workers were briefly trapped inside the office as the fire started to spread.
However, firefighters quickly extinguished the flames before anyone could be hurt.
There was significant damage to the building because of the fire, firefighters’ efforts, and a sprinkler system in the building.
The office was on the third floor of the building.
Soghomonian was seen on surveillance video entering the building and going up to the third floor.
There is still no known motive for setting the fire, according to police.
Sanders was not in the office when the fire occurred.
Because the building was also used in interstate commerce, police charged Soghomonian with using fire to damage a building used in interstate commerce.
The penalty for these charges is 5 to 20 years in jail and a fine of up to $250,000.
It was not known whether Soghomonian had legal counsel.
A hearing on the charges has not yet been scheduled, either.
In a statement following the arrest, Sanders said:
“I am deeply grateful to the swift, professional, coordinated efforts of local, state, and federal law enforcement in response to the fire at my Vermont office on Friday.
“I am also thankful that none of the many people who were in the office building at the time of the fire were injured.”
“I appreciate the outpouring of support and well-wishes for me and my staff,” he added.
“We are proud to be able to continue to serve Vermonters during these challenging times.”
Sanders is a socialist independent senator who caucuses with Democrats.
He has been in the Senate for 18 years.
