More arson charges against man accused of setting fires at Masonic halls
Posted April 6, 2021 2:55 pm.
Last Updated April 6, 2021 9:25 pm.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The man believed to be responsible for starting a fire at a Masonic hall in Vancouver last week has now been charged in two other similar events in North Vancouver.
The BC Prosecution Service says Benjamin Kohlman, 42, is charged with two more counts of arson and three additional counts of break, enter, and commit arson.
The newer charges are connected to fires set at the Lynn Valley Lodge and the North Vancouver Masonic Centre.
All three fires broke out early Tuesday morning. The buildings were empty at the time.
Police arrested Kohlman later that day.
Video surfaced on social media shortly after the fires, showing what appeared to be images of a man carrying a gas canister walking to a parked outside the Vancouver hall. In the video, viewers can see flames near the building’s doorway before an altercation breaks out between the man and someone who appears to be a police officer.
The VPD later confirmed that an off-duty officer happened to be in the area when he spotted the man.
-With files from Martin MacMahon, Hana Mae Nassar, Sonia Aslam
