Police: Man breaks into garages, sets fire

A burglary turned into arson Monday night when a man broke into two garages and then set a small fire, according to police.

Around 8:30 that night, a man showed up at his ex-girlfriend’s apartment building in the 2700 block of East Mesa Verde Drive and got into her garage, reportedly without permission.

“He may have had a garage door opener,” said Costa Mesa police Lt. Mark Manley.

Once inside his ex-girlfriend’s garage, the man broke through the wall into an adjacent garage, where he allegedly set a small fire near that garage’s door, Manley said.

“I’m guessing the extent of the damage was fairly minor,” the lieutenant said.

Manly said he doesn’t know what motivated the man to break into the garages or set the fire.

Police have a lead on the suspect but declined to release a name or description while they investigate.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck