The second firebombing in recent weeks connected to the Fresno Police Department damaged an officer's northwest Fresno home early Sunday.
No one was injured in the attack, which happened about an hour after the officer ended her shift, but it prompted Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer to put all of his officers on alert.
Less than three weeks ago, a police pickup was burned at the Southwest Police District station.
Around 2 a.m. Sunday, the female officer had gotten off duty from the same Southwest Police District station, Dyer said, and arrived at her northwest Fresno home about a half-hour later.
Shortly after, at about 3 a.m., someone lobbed several Molotov cocktails at the home, igniting fires that caused minor to moderate damage to both the inside and outside of the house.
Another woman and three children also were in the home, Dyer said.
"We are looking into whether or not she was specifically targeted, and whether she was specifically targeted because she's a police officer," Dyer said. "That has yet to be determined."
Dyer said investigators will examine the officer's recent cases to look for any possible connections.
He declined to release the officer's name or where she lives.
Police officers frequently are threatened, Dyer said, and some officers' homes and vehicles have been broken into in the past, usually to steal guns or armor.
"But to my knowledge, I can't remember an incident where we had a police officer's house targeted and firebombed," he said. "It's very concerning for us if, in fact, this officer was targeted because she's a female police officer."
Raising suspicions further is a recent arson at the Southwest Police District station at Tuolumne and C streets, Dyer said. About 11:30 p.m. on Aug. 17, a marked patrol pickup was burned in the station's parking lot, which also damaged the personal vehicles of two officers. Dyer said none of the vehicles were connected to the officer whose home was targeted on Sunday.
About an hour after the station fire, Dyer said, someone published a blog on the website Indybay.org praising the attack. Dyer said he believed the blogger "either knows or was involved" because the blog post included details that had not yet been released to the public.
"We're trying to determine if these two incidents are related," Dyer said Sunday. "We are not certain of that."
The latest incident prompted Dyer to issue a message to all Fresno police personnel "making sure they're taking extra steps, being diligent and vigilant about their own safety in the event police officers are being targeted."
Dyer said the department is taking steps to ensure the officer's safety, and will conduct surveillance and provide other security measures to make sure no additional damage happens at her home.
Dyer said the incident is being investigated jointly by arson investigators from both the Fresno police and Fresno fire departments. No arrests have been made.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
