Downtown Shreveport Landmark Damaged by Fire; Suspect Arrested

Shreveport firefighters made short work of a potentially-devestating fire this afternoon at the old Arlington Hotel in the 700 block of Common Street.  They got the call just after 1:45 and arrived 3 minutes later to find smoke coming from a second floor window.  They quickly made access to the abandoned building and found a fire in one room, which they quickly extinguished and kept it from spreading to any other rooms of the historic structure.  Witnesses saw a man leaving the building just before the fire was discovered and reported that.  Shreveport police were able to locate and detain a suspect a short time later.  After questioning by police and fire investigators, 25-year-old Christopher Budds was arrested and charged with one count of simple arson.  There were no injuries reported as a result of the fire and the investigation is on-going.