The “why” behind why ATF is assisting College Station Fire in the Krispy Kreme investigation

COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KBTX) – After the Krispy Kreme burned down in College Station on Monday, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives sent 25 agents to assist the College Station Fire Department in their investigation.

The Krispy Kreme explosion occurred early Monday morning. Raul Gonzalez, Gumby’s general manager, called 9-1-1 when he saw Krispy Kreme on fire and said he heard an explosion moments before.

“There was only a small flame inside the building, but you could clearly see that the windows were blown out. It was just broken. After that phone call (to 9-1-1), literally two minutes later, there were just more explosions. Smaller ones, but yeah, they definitely made the fire bigger,” Gonzalez said.

ATF agents arrived on scene at Krispy Kreme on Tuesday. In cases like the Krispy Kreme explosion, agents are deployed to assist local authorities with investigations.

After KBTX spoke with a fire school director, a private investigator and the ATF, it’s clear that complex investigations often require the assistance of agencies like the ATF.

Johnny Zachary, director of the Kilgore College Fire Academy, said it is important for firefighters to be methodical and purposeful when extinguishing a fire and dealing with the aftermath.

Firefighters are trained to carefully observe an accident scene and look for possible signs of incendiary devices.

“If it turns out it was intentionally stopped for some reason, we have to slow it down and sometimes we have to get a judge to sign a search warrant for further searches or other things, so it gets pretty complicated,” he told Zacharias.

KBTX also sat down with a licensed private investigator, Donnie Manry, who explained why the College Station Fire Department accepted ATF’s help in investigating this crime scene.

He explains that the moment a 9-1-1 call is made, an investigation occurs. “However, when the task at hand is larger than what the department can handle alone, federal agencies such as ATF often offer assistance,” Manry said.

Federal agencies can provide support, additional manpower and additional resources to local agencies such as the College Station Fire Department.

“It’s really nice to have it (the extra help) when you’re short on staff and you have a case like this that’s important and you need that expertise, people who deal with it every day.” They have one Arson Division at ATF and that’s what they do. They watch this every day, so it’s great that they jump in when you ask them,” Manry said.

Manry said after seeing videos of the fire, he wasn’t surprised the resources would be put into an investigation like this.

“It appeared from some of your videos and recordings that there may have been patterns attributable to accelerators. An accelerator can be anything: gasoline, diesel fuel, charcoal or lighter. Something accelerated the fire and started it,” Manry said.

Manry said if a federal agency gets involved, both the local and federal agencies would have a lead case officer and work side by side until the investigation is complete. College Station Fire remains in charge of this investigation.

ATF Houston Division Assistant Special Agent in Charge Frank Ortega said the complexity of the fire case will determine whether members of the ATF National Response Team are called in.

“We have our national response team made up of various members from different disciplines, we have CFI blast specialists, electrical engineers, fire protection engineers, it just depends on the size and scope of the scene,” Ortega said.

In a press release sent to KBTX, College Station Fire states:

“The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives is assisting the College Station Fire Department in investigating the cause of the Krispy Kreme fire Monday morning. The ATF contacted CSFD Fire Marshal Cameron Giordano on Monday and offered assistance. This collaboration between local and federal agencies brings specialized resources, expertise and manpower to investigate an accident scene that the fire department must respond quickly. With the help of 25 ATF agents, the CSFD’s four firefighters can examine the crime scene for evidence, interview witnesses and review surveillance camera footage. College Station police are also assisting in the investigation. The Krispy Kreme fire incident commander contacted Firefighter Giordano, who was on scene and conducted the investigation before the fire was fully extinguished. The College Station Fire Department investigates all fires to determine the cause and location of origin. Several other city departments helped make this location a safe location for firefighters. Roads, utilities, public works and police also responded Monday morning to control the area surrounding the accident scene so firefighters could work safely. This is an ongoing investigation and the crime scene continues to be secured.”

At this time, there is no specific timeline for how long agents will remain in the city, according to the ATF.

The College Station Fire Department said the building and scene will continue to be secured as the investigation continues.

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