D. Perritt has been barbecuing with his crew at Smokin’ D’s for a decade. When he walked in on Wednesday he noticed a stain on the outside of the building.
“That’s strange. What was that? and went out there and looked. At first we thought it was transmission fluid but then we figured out it was lighter fluid.”
When he reviewed security footage, he discovered a man had sprayed liquid all over the front of the business early Wednesday morning.
Owner of popular St.Augustine BBQ restaurant tells me a man doused the building in lighter fluid and fled early Wed. morning @ActionNewsJax pic.twitter.com/a72pZOw97S
— Beth Rousseau (@BethANJax) January 5, 2017
Smokin' D's owner says this security camera captured incident. Says man looked directly at cam while spraying lighter fluid @ActionNewsJax pic.twitter.com/nPbzYIyxnq
— Beth Rousseau (@BethANJax) January 5, 2017
Smokin' D's owner tells me these stains on the building are from the lighter fluid the man sprayed. @ActionNewsJax pic.twitter.com/qMSWjdlmDq
— Beth Rousseau (@BethANJax) January 5, 2017
“That’s cedar. There’s no wood that burns faster than cedar," Perritt said. "If he’d have struck a match to it, that place would have burned to the ground in seconds. The fire department never would have got to the place in time.”
But that’s not what happened. Surveillance video shows the man walking away and a white van pulling out of the parking lot a few seconds later.
“He was looking right at that camera. It was almost like he knew that camera was there and that he was going to be seen,” said Perritt.
Perritt thinks it could have been someone trying to send a message, but regardless of the reason, he wants answers.
“For somebody like that, you know, whether he’s got something against me or something against somebody or is just crazy, that’s not someone you want out on the streets,” said the business owner.
Cox Media Group
