Strange Device May Have Triggered Fire

A fire at a deli in downtown Hemet may have been triggered by a suspicious device found at the scene, authorities said today.

Firefighters were called to the Los Altos Meat Market at 126 N. Carmalita St. shortly before 10 Thursday night.

Crews extinguished the blaze within minutes and located “a suspicious device near what they believed was the point of origin,” said police Lt. Duane Wisehart, who did not elaborate.

Hemet police officers and a team from the Riverside County sheriff’s bomb squad were sent to investigate, and the device was removed and secured, according to Wisehart.

“Investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire and whether the suspicious device and the fire are related,” he said.

Anyone with information was asked to call Hemet police at (951) 765- 2400, or leave an anonymous tip on the city’s crime hotline, (951) 765-3897.