Suspicious fire erupts at Outlaws Motorcycle Clubhouse in Saginaw on Devil’s Night

SAGINAW, MI — For the second time in recent months, a biker clubhouse in Saginaw has been the site of a fire.

About 11:24 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 30, Saginaw firefighters received a call for smoke on the city’s West Side. Shortly thereafter, a Michigan State Police helicopter flying overhead reported a heat signature coming from a building on Durand Street, said Saginaw Interim Fire Chief Brandon Hausbeck.

At that, crews quickly upgraded their response to a structure fire. They arrived at 1903 Durand St., a private club of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club, to see smoke emanating from it, Hausbeck said.

Crews entered the building and extinguished the blaze. There were no civilians inside at the time, Hausbeck said.

The building sustained smoke and fire damage but is not a total loss. The estimated cost of damage, both to the structure and its contents, is $45,000, Hausbeck said.

Outlaws MC clubhouse in Saginaw — The private clubhouse of the Outlaws Motorcycle Club at 1903 Durand St. in Saginaw.

Buena Vista Township firefighters provided mutual aid. Crews cleared the scene about 1:30 a.m.

Hausbeck could not elaborate on the fire’s cause, apart from saying it is suspicious. He declined to speculate on if the fire was linked to the date being Devil’s Night, but said it was the only structure fire to occur in the city overnight.

A previous fire at the Durand Street club occurred the morning of June 15. Crews arrived to find a leaf blower was burning and doused its flames.

Shortly afterward, witnesses came forward to say they saw a person pouring some fluid on the clubhouse’s back porch and lightning it. Once ignited, the flames flashed up then went out, the witnesses said.

Investigators found evidence at the scene corroborating the witnesses’ accounts.

The fire itself did not cause much damage to the clubhouse, which the Fraternal Order of Outlaws BC has owned since February 2019.

The next day, police arrested a 32-year-old suspect on a charge of first-degree arson. The man was released from the jail the following afternoon.

Man arrested on arson charge after fire at Outlaws Motorcycle Clubhouse in Saginaw

On Sept. 13, authorities issued a warrant for the man’s arrest on a charge of third-degree arson, a five-year felony. As of Oct. 31, police have not rearrested the man.

There have been 162 structure fires reported in the city so far this year. The city had 196 such fires throughout 2022.

In hopes of curbing potential fires and Halloween-inspired mischief, volunteers are joining police and firefighters patrolling neighborhoods from dusk to dawn on Oct. 31.

Some will patrol on foot, while others will patrol neighborhoods in vehicles with the program’s flashing yellow lights, looking out for suspicious activity, specifically around abandoned buildings and homes, city officials said.

After 2006, when Saginaw firefighters responded to 17 arson-related fires on Oct. 30-31, the city brought together community members, law enforcement agencies, and the Saginaw Fire Department to create the program designed to address the growing arson problem through community awareness and involvement.

Arson Watch aims to significantly reduce arson rates on Halloween Eve, sometimes known as Devil’s Night, thus reducing overall arson-related firefighter injuries and costly community damages, Saginaw Fire Marshall Derron Suchodolski said.

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Reports of arson have decreased in the years since the program began, and no arson was reported during Oct. 30-31, 2022, he said.

The Outlaws Motorcycle Club was established in 1935 in McCook, Illinois. Since then, it has expanded to 41 countries. It has four Michigan chapters, including one in Bay City.

“The Outlaws Motorcycle Club is not a criminal organization,” the club states on its website. ”It is a motorcycle club. … We may not live by the rules of society, but we do live by its laws.”

Source: Michigan Live