La Pine man charged in St. Charles Bend arson fire

A La Pine man was arrested on arson charges Wednesday evening at St. Charles Bend, accused of using a lighter and hand sanitizer to start and stoke a small fire in a trash can in the Emergency Department, police said.

Around 6:30 p.m., a Bend police officer opened a consult room door in the Emergency Department and saw Henry Anthony Crall, 35, pouring hand sanitizer on a trash can “in an effort to stoke the fire,” Lt. Jason Maniscalco said.

“Crall continued to pour hand sanitizer on the trash can as the officer attempted to move the garbage can from the room,” Maniscalco added. “A St. Charles Bend volunteer retrieved a fire extinguisher and provided it to the officer on scene. The officer was able to extinguish the fire at that point.”

The Emergency Department waiting area was evacuated for a short time as fire officials responded, but no injuries were reported, the lieutenant said.

Crall was arrested and taken to the Deschutes County Jail, where he was held on $100,000 bail Thursday pending an afternoon arraignment. The district attorney’s initial charging document lists two counts of first-degree arson, one involving damage to property and the other in regards to a threat to people.

Court records show Crall pleaded guilty last year in a 2017 misdemeanor stalking case and was sentenced to 60 days in jail and 18 months probation. In February of this year, the sentence was amended to a 90-day jail term for violating terms of his probation by failing to report to a probation officer and failing to obey a no-contact order.