Man Charged With Arson After Fredericksburg Barricade Incident: Police

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — A man who set a fire inside a building at the Virginia Outdoors Center along the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg Wednesday night was arrested on arson and other charges, according to the Fredericksburg Police Department.

Gary Wood Jr., 32, of Woodford in Caroline County, was held at the Rappahannock Regional Jail without bond, police said.

Fredericksburg Police officers showed up at the center on Fall Hill Avenue around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday after an employee reported a suspicious man walking around the property with a knife. When they arrived, officers saw that Wood was carrying a large butcher's knife, police said.

When Wood noticed the police officers, he went inside the Virginia Outdoor Center and locked the exterior door, police said. No employees were in the building when he barricaded himself inside.

Police officers then set up a perimeter around the center and called the department’s Crisis Negotiation Team and Special Equipment Tactical Team.

When crisis negotiators arrived, they took over communication with Wood and worked to deescalate the situation, police said.

Officers could see Wood inside the building gathering additional edged tools, according to police. After several hours of trying to get him to voluntarily leave the building, the police tactical team entered the building and saw that he had started a fire inside the center.

The Special Equipment Tactical Team took Wood into custody and removed him from the building before going back in to put out the fire, police said.

Along with arson, Wood faces trespassing, unlawful entry and destruction of property charges, police said.