Charge: Man burns 'gay paper,' The Stranger, in Fremont public garage The man now faces an arson charge

A 50-year-old man told police after his late-September arrest that he burned copies of The Stranger in a Fremont public garage because it's a "gay paper" that runs contrary to his Catholic beliefs.

A 50-year-old man told police after his late-September arrest that he burned copies of The Stranger in a Fremont public garage because it's a "gay paper" that runs contrary to his Catholic beliefs. Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Charge: Man burns 'gay paper,' The Stranger, in Fremont public garage 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

A 50-year-old man is charged with arson after reportedly claiming he burned copies of The Stranger in a Fremont garage because it's a "gay paper."

Richard Koprowski is accused of lighting the fires Sept. 21 in a public garage for a building in the 4400 block of Fremont Avenue North that houses a family practice, dentistry offices and private apartments.

Surveillance footage shows him about 10:40 p.m. lighting a piece of paper on fire and dropping it to the ground, according to Seattle police reports.

He then pulled sections of a newspaper from a Dumpster, lit them on fire and threw them back in the Dumpster, court records say. He eventually closes the Dumpster lid and walks away, Seattle police claim, but he returned about 11:20 p.m. and ignited more objects in the Dumpster. Video shows sparks emanating from the bin before Koprowski pulled out newspapers and stomped on them, reports indicate.

Prosecutors also say Koprowski lit a "a substance" on fire and wedged it between a pipe and ceiling insulation. That blaze self-extinguished.

A worker at the neighboring Market Time store snapped a photo of him that night.

Police were called Sept. 28 when someone at Market Time saw Koprowski at the store. Cops found Koprowski at the building where he allegedly lit the fires, wearing the same clothing he was seen wearing in the surveillance video, according to reports.

Koprowski was initially arrested for investigation of second-degree reckless burning. However, prosecutors learned that he told police he burned copies of The Stranger because it is a "gay paper," which is against his Catholic faith.

Prosecutors charged him with second-degree arson. He remains held in King County Jail on $50,000 bail.

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