Bicyclist suspected in massive Emeryville fire

Emeryville Police Capt. Oliver Collins, Mayor Scott Donahue and Police Chief Jennifer Tejada stand with photographs of a suspect wanted for questioning in the May 13 arson fire at a residential building under construction, at a news conference in Emeryville, Calif. on Thursday, June 8, 2017. less Emeryville Police Capt. Oliver Collins, Mayor Scott Donahue and Police Chief Jennifer Tejada stand with photographs of a suspect wanted for questioning in the May 13 arson fire at a residential building under ... more Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 13 Caption Close Bicyclist suspected in massive Emeryville fire 1 / 13 Back to Gallery

A man riding a bicycle was identified as a suspect in what investigators said Thursday was a deliberately set fire that all but burned down a $35 million complex under construction in Emeryville — for the second time in 10 months.

The suspected arsonist, seen in four grainy photographs taken by surveillance cameras and released by authorities, appeared to be wearing a hooded sweatshirt May 13 as he pedaled in the middle of the night on the sidewalk near the 7-story residential and business development known as the Intersection, located in the 3800 block of San Pablo Avenue.

The man, who wore a backpack, was not sought in the first deliberately set fire at the site on the Emeryville-Oakland border in July, a blaze eerily similar to the other, in circumstances and in damages.

The suspect somehow snuck past two armed guards and 12 surveillance cameras, heightened security after the first fire, said the project’s developer, Rick Holliday of Holliday Development. Such precautions “clearly didn’t work,” he said.

Photo: ATF Officials from the ATF, Alameda County Fire Department and...

“We just need to know who’s under the sweatshirt and what they’re all about, and get them to stop doing it,” he said.

Jill Snyder, special agent in charge of the San Francisco office of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, declined to comment on a possible suspect in the earlier fire. She also would not elaborate on how the fires were set or specify a possible motive.

A reward of $100,000 from the ATF and the developer, was offered for the arrest and prosecution of the person responsible for the May fire and the earlier fire, Snyder said.

“These fires resulted in extensive damages and could have resulted in loss of life,” Snyder said.

The July fire, which likewise destroyed the unfinished complex, was set at an almost identical stage in the building’s construction, Snyder said — when it was about halfway built and had wooden and metal framing, but no drywall, making it all the more susceptible to the flames that devoured it.

Snyder said both fires had been “intentionally set” in the middle of the night and appeared to be the work of an arsonist. It was not immediately known if an accelerant was used.

The project’s developer had previously said the fires were arson and an “attack on housing.” The announcement by investigators Thursday was the first official confirmation.

Capt. Oliver Collins of the Emeryville Police Department said investigators believed the May fire to be the work of a single individual and not a coordinated group effort.

“People are understandably upset,” said Emeryville Mayor Scott Donahue. “I just ask for patience, because we are going to solve this.”

In the photos released by investigators, the suspect, wearing all dark clothing, is seen riding a bicycle with narrow tires and flat handlebars on the sidewalk near the site at 2:25 a.m., and walking away in the opposite direction at 2:38 a.m. He was wearing a dark backpack with a white stripe on the back.

Holliday said last month that he didn’t believe two fires at the same site within 10 months were a coincidence, labeling them “obviously arson (and) an attack on housing.” He said Thursday his intuition had been “validated,” but added that he was no closer to understanding who was behind it and why.

Golden Watson, the landlord of a two-story apartment building nearby on 36th Street, said the fire in May caused $800,000 damage to his building, which caught fire from a stray ember floating in the breeze. Luckily, he said, his father, who lives upstairs in the apartment building, was out of the country. No one was injured in the fire.

Since then, Watson said repairing his building has been slow because of a long rotation of fire reports, insurance adjustors and clean-up crews.

“We’re just taking action,” Watson said. “It’s a slow process, and we’re taking it day to day.”

At the Intersection project, construction crews plan to clean the site, demolish the remains of the seven-story building and begin reconstruction from the foundation. The mixed-use development is to include 105 residential units and 21,000 square feet of retail space.

Michael Bodley and Steve Rubenstein are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: mbodley@sfchronicle.com, srubenstein@sfchronicle.com