Seattle Police Tuesday night were looking for three people seen leaving the scene of a utility pole fire set at Harvard and E Pine. The pole was still smoking around 10:45p as the call came into police reporting the two white males and one white female wearing a hoodie seen leaving via Harvard. According to police radio dispatches, the three entered a Harvard Ave residence where “anarchists” are known to live.

Officers surrounded the Harvard Ave residence as the suspects tried to leave out the back and then through a window before heading back inside when they saw police, according to radio dispatches. One officer reported seeing a container of lighter fluid in front of the residence.

No word on arrests but we do know that police made contact with the suspects and were talking with them about the incident.

The pole was not significantly damaged.

CHS has reported on incidents of Capitol Hill utility pole arson over the years but never any arrests. Some were set by mentally ill people, others we were told were set to clear off layers of debris to clear space for future postering. The anarchist connection is a new one for us, however.