Surprise man watches home get set on fire through doorbell camera; suspect caught

SURPRISE, Ariz. - A suspect has been caught after a Surprise homeowner watched his house get set on fire through the live feed of his doorbell camera just days before Christmas.

Now, the homeowner is stunned as to why anyone would do such a thing.

The incident happened on Dec. 22, when a man in a red hoodie walked up, covered a camera, and then proceeded to dumping out a liquid and lighting a fire on William Sanders' porch.

"I really don't feel targeted. I think personal opinion, they got the wrong house. Should have been somewhere else," said Sanders.

"You haven't seen him before?" Sanders was asked.

"I've not seen this gentleman before," Sanders replied. He also said he gets along with everyone.

As the video continues, the flames and smoke grow. The bearded man in red later left the scene.

"Walks away just as calmly as you please," said Sanders.

On Dec. 29, Surprise Police announced that 36-year-old Justin Winjum was arrested in connection with the arson.

Winjum now faces arson and criminal damage charges.

The motive for the crime is still unknown.

Justin Winjum

The aftermath

The aftermath of the incident can be readily seen. There are charred shingle, a charred Ring doorbell, and a boarded-up door. Police investigators reportedly cut out a square on a welcome mat for analysis to see what the accelerant was.

Sanders says it was his doorbell that first alerted him.

"I was kind of expecting an Amazon package, so I thought maybe I should look,' said Sanders. "When I looked, there was flames in front of it, and I thought holy crap."

An alert neighbor ran up, grabbed his hose, and put the fire out as fast as they could.

Now, Sanders needs to do some work to repair his home.

"Repairing the sheet rock and getting rid of the smell," said Sanders.

The fire spared a number of things, like ornaments on his Christmas Tree Sanders' late wife bought.

The same fire, however, ruined the fudge Sanders makes for his family.

"That fudge is destroyed, so all that work," said Sanders.

Since the fire, Sanders has looked at the surveillance video over and over, trying to think who the person could be. However, he knows the neighbor who grabbed the hose, and saved what mattered most.

"Once this is cleared up and everything, I'll probably take them over for a really nice bottle of scotch," said Sanders.

Police are investigating the incident, and they are asking for information from the public. Anyone with information should contact Surprise Police.