Man charged with Bethesda car fires

WASHINGTON — A Bethesda man is in police custody and being charged with igniting fires inside cars in Montgomery County earlier this week.

Police arrested 20-year-old Mansour Benkreira on Thursday at about 11:30 p.m. and he is being charged with three counts of arson.

Benkreira is accused of setting fires to three vehicles that were parked near the 7000 block of Glenbrook Road in Bethesda — an area not far from downtown — on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, police say Benkreira went into unlocked vehicles, removed the items in the cars’ glove compartments, put the item on the front passenger seat and set them on fire.

Video from a home security system in the area helped detectives make the arrest.

Montgomery County Fire Spokesman Pete Piringer says there is another person of interest police are still seeking.

Below is a map of the area of the car fires:

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