By Alex Brizee
The Idaho Statesman
MERIDIAN, Idaho — The Meridian Police Department announced Monday night that a 43-year-old woman suspected of driving a stolen ambulance into a building in what law enforcement said was an “attempt to burn” it has been arrested.
Sarah George, of Boise, was arrested on federal charges for allegedly crashing into the Portico North building off Eagle Road, Meridian Police Chief Tracy Basterrechea said at a news conference that was hastily scheduled for 7 p.m.
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The building, owned by St. Luke’s Health System, included office space that was being leased to the Department of Homeland Security.
As of Monday, George faces charges for the attempted destruction of a federal property by fire and malicious destruction of property used in or affecting interstate commerce by fire, according to police. Additional charges are possible, Basterrechea said.
“This type of criminal behavior will not be tolerated in Meridian,” Basterrechea said. “This conduct is unacceptable, it will be investigated and it will be charged to the fullest extent of the law.”
Law enforcement and fire crews responded to a 911 call last Wednesday night after a Canyon County ambulance was stolen from the ambulance bay at St. Luke’s Meridian Medical Center, Basterrechea told reporters last week.
Basterrechea said evidence indicated that George drove north through the parking lot and retrieved gas cans hidden in nearby vegetation. She then drove directly into the Portico North building, which is on adjacent property north of the St. Luke’s hospital in Meridian.
Investigators said they believe that George poured an accelerant inside the building and around the outside of the ambulance early Thursday morning, but was unable to ignite a fire “before being scared off by responding agencies,” Basterrechea said.
Following a five-day investigation, it was “good old-fashioned police work” that led both local, state and federal authorities to locate and arrest the suspect, Basterrechea said at the press conference. The FBI and the Office of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms were involved in the investigation.
“These investigators literally went door to door, looking for possible camera footage, possible witnesses. and other information and evidence,” Basterrechea said.
Homeland Security includes Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The U.S. General Services Administration, which leases office space for federal agencies, told the Statesman on Feb. 11 that it was leasing space for ICE to meet the agency’s workspace needs.
The building is not used for clinical care, St. Luke’s told the Statesman. St. Luke’s also said the deal was signed last fall, but it wasn’t publicly known until a couple of weeks ago.
It’s unknown when the federal agencies planned to start using the building, or whether they already had started.
Early Saturday morning, a building in Boise rented by ICE and DHS was vandalized, with windows broken and spray paint used, according to Boise police.
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