A man is in custody in connection with a pair of home fires Wednesday morning in Fort Lauderdale in which a trail of blood was left behind, fire officials said.
The first fire was reported around 5 a.m. at an unoccupied family home in the 6300 block of Northeast 18th Avenue, according to Matt Little, spokesman for Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue.
Little said the damage was minor, but authorities found a trail of blood through the home.
The second fire was reported around 5:25 a.m. at a vacant single family home in the 2000 block of Northeast 62nd Street. The damage was moderate but another trail of blood was found, Little said.
After an investigation by detectives and K-9 officers, 34-year-old Keiichi Ito was located and arrested, police said.
When Ito was taken into custody, officers spotted a cut o his right arm, which they say he received during the first fire. Ito was taken to North Broward Medical Center for treatment and is being charged with two counts of arson, police said.
Police are still investigating the incident, Little said.
