Cape police investigating Monday fire as arson

Cape Girardeau police are investigating a Monday fire as a likely arson, saying they found the makings of a Molotov cocktail amid the embers.

The fire department responded to a call to the 400 block of South Benton Street at about 8:30 p.m. Monday, according to police department spokesman Jason Selzer. The fire on a back-porch couch and the exterior wall of the home was quickly extinguished, Selzer said, but police ruled the blaze an arson after finding the makeshift incendiary device that apparently had been lobbed onto the back porch.

The resident of the home heard a neighbor yell that the back porch was on fire and both were able to push the burning couch off the porch and onto the ground, Selzer said. But they could not extinguish the wall and called the fire department. Later, the neighbor told police he heard a noise that was described as a pop, discovered the fire and called 911.

Evidence collected at the scene was consistent with a Molotov cocktail. Police are continuing to investigate, Selzer said, though the neighbor did not report seeing anyone.

Pertinent address:

400 S. Benton St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.