Local News in Brief : 12th Salon Set on Fire
A Sepulveda nail salon was heavily damaged by fire early Thursday, becoming the 12th San Fernando Valley beauty shop to be victimized by arson since February, the Los Angeles Fire Department reported.
The Nail, located in a mini-mall on Sepulveda Boulevard, was broken into, ransacked and set afire about 1:50 a.m., Inspector Ed Reed said.
City arson investigators believe the fire, which caused an estimated $20,000 in damage, is related to 11 unexplained break-ins at hair and nail salons in the mid-Valley area in which 10 fires causing more than $1 million in damage have been set.
A lengthy investigation of the crimes has eliminated most common motives for arson, including insurance fraud, extortion, competition or gang or organized crime activity, Reed said. Investigators have made no arrests.
“The thing that connects them is the similarities in the pattern of breaking in, ransacking and setting a fire,” Reed said.
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