The man responsible for a major 2021 fire at a storage facility near the Salem airport was arrested Wednesday in connection with an attempted burglary at a West Salem hardware store.

Salem police arrested Tristin Sillman, 27, early in the morning after responding to a 12:36 a.m. call of a burglary in progress at a store on Northwest Wallace Road, the Salem Police Department said in a statement.

The burglary was reported from an alarm activation at 820 Wallace Rd. N.W., the West Salem Ace Hardware, according to police and dispatch reports.

Polk County Circuit Court records show Sillman is charged with first-degree burglary, criminal mischief, possessing methamphetamine and possessing a weapon as a felon.

His criminal history includes a notable arson from 2021 that caused $1 million in damage to a storage facility on Turner Road. The fire damaged the belongings of 189 people, Salem Reporter reported at the time. Police said at the time that he started the fire with a stolen flare gun.

Sillman pleaded guilty Oct. 31, 2022 to the arson and was sentenced the same day to two years in state prison, Marion County Circuit Court records show.

On Wednesday, when police responded to the Ace Hardware store, officers saw a masked person walking around inside the store, according to a Salem police statement. The person attempted to flee the store before walking out the front door, where police arrested him.

Officers identified the man as Sillman. He had stolen an axe, backpack, six portable heaters, flame sticks and a dagger, a police affidavit said. Upon his arrest, Sillman told police that he broke into the store by using a screwdriver to break a window and then unplugged the security camera system, according to the affidavit.

A full list of the stolen items is yet to be made.

Sillman also had a dagger hidden beneath his clothing and a small plastic bag with meth in it, the affidavit said.

He is currently on supervision with Marion County for previous criminal convictions, including the 2021 storage arson.

In 2020, he pleaded guilty to menacing after threatening someone with a screwdriver, according to Marion County court records.

While awaiting sentencing for the arson, Sillman was charged for fourth-degree assault in a domestic violence incident. He pleaded guilty in both cases the same day, and was sentenced to six months for the assault.

Sillman is in custody at the Polk County Jail on $100,000 bail, the jail roster shows.

Contact reporter Madeleine Moore: [email protected].

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