Tri-City Herald
RICHLAND, Wash. — A 21-year-old man who allegedly threatened to attack and kill four Richland firefighters as they tried to put out a small blaze in his apartment has been ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation.
The case against Nelson Aguayo has been put on hold until a Benton County Superior Court judge determines he’s competent to proceed to trial.
Aguayo is charged with four counts of third-degree assault for the Oct. 18 incident.
Firefighters responded at 3:50 p.m. to a fire alarm at Shoreline Village Apartments and spotted smoke coming from one of the Duportail Street apartments.
They tried to go inside the third-floor apartment and investigate, but Aguayo verbally and physically threatened to assault the firefighters and approached them in an aggressive manner, court documents said. Aguayo then struggled with them as the firefighters tried to subdue him, documents said.
Richland police arrived to find Aguayo being held down on the ground by two firefighters. Officers also had to restrain Aguayo so they could get him out of the apartment and allow crews to extinguish the fire, court documents said.
Firefighters later determined that the fire was intentionally set using a pile of clothes inside the apartment.
Aguayo had been living in Richland temporarily while working on a construction crew.
After his arrest, Aguayo refused to leave his Benton County jail cell and attend his court hearings. Eventually he did appear before Judge Alex Ekstrom, who ordered that state psychiatrists from Eastern State Hospital evaluate Aguayo inside the jail.
Aguayo remains held on $50,000 bail. A review hearing is scheduled Dec. 10.
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