Apr. 19—PLYMOUTH — The Ashtabula County Sheriff’s Office took a person of interest into custody Thursday afternoon after a fire destroyed a building in the 2900 block of Jefferson Road, Plymouth Township Fire Chief Bill Strubbe said.
“We were called just before 8 a.m. to a fire in a building. When we left the station you could see the cloud of smoke,” Strubbe said of the fire that was at least five to four kilometers away.
He said it was a garage that had been converted into a home but has been vacant for about a decade.
Strubbe said the Sheriff’s Office has reason to believe the person in question may have been involved in the fire.
He said the fire is being investigated by the Sheriff’s Office and the Ohio Fire Marshal’s Office. Strubbe said the fire was a total loss, but it appeared there were few contents in the building.
Strubbe said the department was on scene for two and a half hours, including the investigation. He said firefighters from Jefferson, Saybrook, Ashtabula and Austinburg assisted with the fire.
