Naperville investigating arson at hospice office
Naperville police say an arsonist struck at a hospice care business on Ogden Avenue, and they're asking for help in finding the culprit.
Firefighters called the blaze suspicious shortly after extinguishing it about 10 p.m. Jan. 11 at the office of Transitions Hospice and Transitions Home Medical Group at 710 E. Ogden Ave. They called in extra investigators from a DuPage County task force and eventually Naperville police took over the case. Cmdr. Jason Arres said Tuesday it has been ruled arson.
"It is an arson investigation right now. We're in the midst of investigating and trying to identify suspects," Arres said. "We're looking for anyone who might have witnessed anything on the night in question to contact our investigations division."
Witnesses are asked to call police at (630) 420-6666 or place an anonymous call to Naperville Crime Stoppers at (630) 420-6006.
Firefighters said the fire was reported about 9:40 p.m. and no one was in the business at the time. Tim Scully, vice president of Transitions Hospice and Transitions Home Medical Group, said no one has worked there since the fire, either, because of the ongoing arson investigation and damage from the smoke and flames.
"It was quite a mess," Scully said.
Eight people worked regularly at the 5,000-square-foot office and Scully said they have been relocated to the company's corporate headquarters in Huntley, from which Transitions serves clients in 26 counties. Employees at the Naperville satellite office mostly worked in billing and palliative care, but there also was space for hospice nurses to stop in and fill out patient charts.
Scully said his company has participated fully with the police investigation, which he said has "hit some dead ends." Transitions provided a list of employees who left within the past year, but Scully said there is no one he would consider suspicious.
"We're a health care company. We actually take care of people, so I don't know who would have been upset with us," Scully said.
Arres said police are not disclosing what elements of the scene made the fire appear suspicious. But they are looking for leads, processing evidence and working every angle to find whoever set the.
Arres said it appears this was an isolated incident and no other arsons are under investigation in Naperville so far this year.