Man Arrested in 2001 Fire that Killed Phoenix Fireman

PHOENIX - Eight years after a 5-alarm fire took the life of Phoenix firefighter Bret Tarver, the Phoenix Fire Department has arrested a man in the case.

26-year-old Chris Benitez, a soldier in the U.S. army, was arrested in Texas on July 4 in connection to the Southwest Supermarket fire on March 14, 2001. Phoenix's own Bret Tarver died of burns and smoke inhalation while fighting the fire.

The fire started in a trash pile behind the Southwest Supermarket in west Phoenix. It then roared out of control inside the store.

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40-year-old Tarver got disoriented inside the store and minutes before the roof collapsed, fellow firefighters pulled his body out.

"You want to have answers and you want to have closure on an event like this," said Cpt. Willie Nelson. "This has been a great step for us in bringing closure to such a tragic event that affected so many people."

Investigators say Benitez was just 18 when he intentionally set a fire to some cardboard boxes in the back of the store. His motive? Benitez was caught shoplifting beer from the supermarket and was angry with the manager, authorities say.

"When running from the store, the manager chased him down, caught him, took him back into the store, and he was charged with that shoplifting. And that is the motive behind it, we believe," says Cpt. Nelson.

An anonymous tipster contacted police a while back, notifying them that Benitez started the fire. Detectives worked very hard to make an arrest.

Tarver left behind a wife and 3 daughters.

Benitez is facing arson and murder charges. He's in custody in Texas but will be brought to Arizona in the next few weeks.