PITTSBURGH — A Pittsburgh man is facing charges after police said he started the fire that damaged a popular Swissvale hot dog shop over the weekend.
Joseph Pepp, 28, was charged with three counts of aggravated arson and other charges after the incident at D’s Six Pax & Dogz in the 1100 block of Braddock Avenue around 2:30 a.m. Sunday.
Police said he started the fire in a dumpster behind the building, which spread to the business. According to charging documents, Pepp was drinking inside a The Loft bar next door, when an altercation occurred and he was kicked out of the location.
About 10 minutes after Pepp was asked to leave the bar, the bartender got a call from a friend letting him know the back of the building was on fire.
Surveillance footage later caught the act, and the bartender identified Pepp as the person who started the fire.
Three people, including the bartender, were in the building at the time of the fire, and attempted to use fire extinguishers to put it out. The Swissvale Fire Department arrived and put out the flames, but not before the flames damaged the building.
Pepp was arrested in Wheeling, West Virginia on Tuesday, during an unrelated drug operation at a hotel. They say they stopped him coming out of one of the rooms and charged him with possession, then ran his name and found out he was wanted out of Pittsburgh on arson charges.
A Facebook post from the business said it will remain closed through at least the end of the week as they work to fix the damage.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help employees who are now out of a job. You can find that page and donate by clicking here.
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