"I can verify it was arson," Saratoga firefighter and fire investigator Jeremy Davis said. Davis is the lead investigator on the case. He has worked with the Santa Clara County Fire Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms during the course of the investigation.

An arson detection canine named Rosy, from the Santa Clara Fire Arson Task Force, located an area in the house where flammable liquid was used to start the fire, Davis said. Tests then confirmed that the fire was set intentionally.

A fire in 2004 at the house had already been under investigation before the second, more destructive fire in September. Davis said the first fire has also been verified as arson. "We're dealing with a structure that has burned twice with intentionally set fires," he said.

Sandra Dodge was up during the pre-dawn hours the morning of Sept. 23. From her apartment window she saw flames at the two-story wooden house across the street. Dodge was the first of several people to call 911 that morning. "By the time I saw it, the whole house was engulfed in flames," she said.

The neighborhood on Komina Avenue and Oak Street is lined with large trees and closely spaced apartment buildings and wooden homes. Saratoga Elementary School is directly across Komina Avenue from the burned house.

"It could have been much worse," Dodge said, noting that the lack of wind kept the fire from spreading to other homes. "Good fortune, good timing and good firefighting kept it from being a much bigger disaster."

Within minutes of Dodge's 911 call, two engines from the Saratoga Fire Department and two from the Santa Clara Fire Department responded. Due to the size of the fire, Capt. Brad Pike of the Saratoga Fire Department called for a second alarm. Four more engines from the Santa Clara County Fire Department then arrived.

Firefighters quickly brought the fire under control without injuries or serious damage to neighboring homes, although Debbie Cummins' house next door sustained some scorching damage. The fire was extinguished before students started arriving at Saratoga Elementary School that morning.

The burned house was declared a total loss. It had been boarded up and without residents before the first fire was set in 2004. The owner of the house, Bob Baratta-Lorton, had planned to tear the house down prior to its destruction. He has been working with the Saratoga Planning Department on his plans to tear the wrecked house down and replace it with a new two-story house. Some local residents wanted the home declared a historic landmark due to its age but documents at the planning department show that historic status was denied. Baratta-Lorton was not available for comment.

"We're basically finished with the scene," Davis said. "We're now waiting for results to come back from the crime lab." Davis said fingerprints and DNA evidence were recovered from the house and are being processed.

"In order to make an arrest, there are basically three things we want to prove: that the suspect had access to the house, that they had motive and that they had the ability to commit the act.

"We're following up on some very good leads. We're trying to get as much information as possible and go from there."

Anyone with information regarding either of the two fires at 20626 Komina Ave. should contact Davis at 408.867.9001, ext. 307.