HOUSTON – A man is facing charges for allegedly starting a fire at a southeast Houston hotel.
On Dec. 23, 2013, a fire started on the mattress of a room at the Palace Inn off the Gulf Freeway near Dixie Farm Road. Officials said the fire spread to the wall and filled the second floor of the hotel with smoke.
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During the subsequent investigation, arson investigators say they found a pack of matches on the nightstand of the room with one match missing.
Court documents state the person who rented that room was Blake Daniel Fischer, based on hotel records. Investigators say no other person who went into or came out of that room after Fischer on the night of the fire.
A female witness who left the hotel room before Fischer and was waiting in a vehicle outside for him told investigators she asked Fischer what he was doing when he entered the car. Court documents show the woman said Fischer told her that he left the hotel "a surprise."
The estimated damage was $10,000.
Fischer, 26, is charged with arson. No bond has been set.