In the aftermath of a five-alarm fire that destroyed a sprawling apartment construction site in Denver on Jan. 2, investigators used surveillance cameras and facial recognition technology to identify an Aurora man as the suspected arsonist.
Tony Becerra, who was arrested Wednesday, was captured by surveillance cameras filling a container with gasoline an hour before the fire, authorities alleged.
He was later captured leaving the under-construction apartment building at 5377 Leetsdale three minutes before smoke appeared, according to an affidavit filed by a federal investigator.
The fire torched the structure, filled the metro with plumes of smoke, shut down swaths of the neighborhood and took days to fully extinguish. A firefighter injured his shoulder in the response and the site will be demolished.
Becerra, a 38-year-old living in Aurora, faces arson charges in the case.
Authorities say cameras tracked the suspect from a gas station to the construction site.
More details about the fire and the suspect emerged in an arrest affidavit filed by ATF Special Agent Nicholas Foster.
The fire was first reported by a 911 caller who said the structure was burning and a homeless person was inside. Firefighters arrived at the scene within minutes, with fire engines deploying from stations around Denver.
They got the blaze under control on that Friday night, but they continued to stamp out hotspots for days, with officials saying they needed an excavator to fully extinguish it. The 283-unit apartment project, known as “Harker Heights” was nearing completion and was expected to open this year, but officials have said it must be demolished now.
As the investigation got underway, officials canvassed the neighborhood and the metro area, collecting video surveillance footage from both private and publicly owned cameras.
The gas station is just a quarter-mile from the substance-use and mental health housing complex, Ananeo, which is “where the DM issued (Becerra’s) driver’s license,” the affidavit states.
He then boarded a bus on Colfax, stepped off at Colorado Boulevard and Eighth Avenue, and walked to the apartment construction site, the affidavit states. Video showed the suspect dressed in black with a white undershirt sticking out.
At 6:30 p.m., Becerra allegedly entered the building, then left four minutes later. Smoke was wafting from the building by about 6:37 p.m. Investigators also confirmed a security guard was at the scene but ruled him out as a suspect.
As the fire grew, Becerra walked up Leetsdale and by 7:02 p.m. arrived at Taste of India, according to the affidavit.
Surveillance footage from inside the restaurant showed him carrying a black bag and wearing a face mask, the affidavit states. He went to the restroom and reemerged with a white shirt on. He smiled toward a camera, for the first time clearly revealing his face, according to investigators.
Investigators later used facial recognition software to identify Becerra as a suspect, per the affidavit. A separate Colorado Bureau of Investigation facial recognition search also connected the footage to a separate photo of Becerra, according to the affidavit
Becerra already had a warrant in Denver for a failure to appear in court for a separate charge related to trespassing. He also has a felony trespassing conviction on his record, according to CBI records.
After leaving the restaurant, Becerra took a bus to the 9 Mile transit station and rode a train to the Florida transit station. The last time cameras captured him, he was walking through a parking lot near South Abilene Street and East Mississippi Avenue in Aurora, some six miles from the site of the fire.
It’s unclear whether Becerra had any prior connection to the construction site; he did not work there, the affidavit states.
Becerra faces felony charges.
According to CBI records, Becerra was arrested Wednesday and charged with three counts of arson and a failure to appear for a trespassing warrant. He faces felony charges in the arson case.
His criminal record goes back to 2003, when he was charged as a juvenile for assault. Since 2006, Becerra has been found guilty of felonies for multiple assaults, menacing and trespassing and a string of other charges that were ultimately dismissed, records state.
He is being held without bond at the Aurora Detention Center.
