Aurora police are offering a $5,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest of the arsonist who set an apartment building on fire Thursday morning, injuring three people.
Police officers were the first to spot the blaze in the eight-unit apartment building in the 2300 block of Emporia Street about 1:45 a.m.
As officers approached, one person leapt out a window from the burning building.
An officer kicked in a door and found a badly injured man, whom the officer managed to drag to safety.
Three people were taken to local hospitals with injuries, the Fire Department said.
“We’re fortunate that this fire was not deadly,” Detective Bob Friel of the Aurora Police Department told 9News. “There is a man right now fighting for his life in a hospital, and there were two others critically injured.
“Very easily, if not for good fortune, could have ended in somebody’s death.”
No firefighters or police officers were injured.
The blaze is being investigated by Aurora’s major-crimes unit and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, which used a dog capable of sniffing out fire-starting materials.
The dog found several locations where fires appeared to have been set, leading investigators to suspect arson, according to Aurora police.
Anyone with information can call Aurora investigators at 303-739-6213.
At least 17 people were displaced by the fire, and the American Red Cross is supplying food, clothing, counseling and hotel rooms for at least 10 of the victims, the organization said.
