Court issues warrant in Pullman motel fire

Whitman County Superior Court issued an arrest warrant for 39-year-old William John Young II, of Spokane, on Tuesday afternoon in connection with an early morning fire that gutted his motel room and caused damage to two others.

Young and his co-workers with a Spokane-based roofing company were staying at the American Travel Inn, 515 S. Grand Ave., while working on a Pullman apartment complex, according to a police news release.

Young and another man occupied Room 59 at the two-story motel where police and firefighters were summoned at 4:40 a.m., police said. Neither occupant was injured.

Young's room was engulfed in flames when first responders arrived, according to a police news release, but firefighters were able to keep the fire from spreading.

According to police Cmdr. Chris Tennant and a city press release, minor damage was caused to the adjoining room and there was water damage to the room below the fire.

Estimated damage to the motel is $80,000 to $100,000, according to Pullman Fire Marshal Chris Wehrung.

"They've been staying here for a very long time," said Mona Kaur, whose parents own the motel. "The company has. They were here last year, too."

Kaur said the man police are now seeking often gave the impression that he was intoxicated.

"At first his partner or room buddy was saying he was playing with toilet paper and lighting it on fire. Now, they're saying it might have been gas or something that he was playing with," she said. "They're still investigating."

The fire is under investigation by two fire investigators and two Pullman police detectives.

Room 59, on the far west corner of the motel, was a mass of charred boards, a stark contrast to the room next door which still showed framed art on the white walls.

Kaur said the motel has closed off the six rooms nearest the blaze, but will otherwise remain open for business.

Shanon Quinn can be reached at (208) 883-4636, or by email to squinn@dnews.com.