Hereford House Restaurant Fire Was Arson

KANSAS CITY, Mo., Oct. 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Kansas City Fire Department and
the Kansas City Police Department, today jointly announced that the
investigation of the Oct. 20, 2008, early morning fire occurring at 2 East
20th Street, Kansas City, Mo., was arson.

Investigators from ATF's National Response Team (NRT), the Kansas City Fire
Department and the Kansas City Police Bomb and Arson Unit, made a thorough
examination of the scene and eliminated all accidental and natural causes of
the fire. Sufficient evidence was recovered during the fire-scene
investigation to allow investigators to determine the fire was incendiary in
nature and intentionally set.

"ATF investigators working alongside our partners have brought this fire cause
and origin determination to a swift conclusion," said ATF National Response
Team Special Agent in Charge Kenneth Chisholm. "With the long standing
tradition of this Kansas City landmark, we recognize the impact this violent
act is having on the community. The work at the crime scene is finished,
however our investigation is not over. We are aggressively following up on
all leads and are confident that the individual(s) responsible for this crime
of violence will be brought to justice."

Kansas City Fire Chief Smokey Dyer was appreciative of ATF's NRT and said,
"This fire was a very serious incident in that it resulted in over a million
dollar loss within our community. Even more important than economic impact,
however, is fires of this nature place Kansas City fire fighters in great
danger. We are extremely fortunate that no fire personnel were killed or
injured."

The public is asked to call ATF's toll free hotline, 1-888-ATF-FIRE
(888-283-3473) or Kansas City Crime Stoppers Hotline at 816-474-TIPS with any
information that may help identify those responsible for the fire. The
hotline numbers are answered 24 hours a day and all calls remain confidential.

More information on ATF and its programs is at www.atf.gov.

Contact: Special Agent Michael Schmitz
Public Information Officer
(816) 559-0756

SOURCE Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

Special Agent Michael Schmitz, Public Information Officer of Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, +1-816-559-0756