A day after a major fire blazed at a recycling depot in New Westminster, charges have been laid in a separate fire case that took place one month ago that destroyed a century-old pier in New Westminster.

The New Westminster Police Department (NWPD) announced today (October 13) that a suspect is facing two charges after an investigation into a fire at Westminster Pier Park, which took place on September 13.

The NWPD had announced on September 17 that a suspect had been arrested but was released on conditions.

Today, 49-year-old Sean Warnick from New Westminster has been charged with mischief of property and arson with damage to property.

He was released from custody on conditions.

Warnick is scheduled to appear in court tomorrow (October 14).

That fire destroyed the 100-year-old pier as well as an art installation made of shipping containers in the shape of a W that had to be removed.

Last night (October 12), a major fire arose around 7 p.m. at a plastic recycling depot at Derwent Way and Salter Street in the Queensborough neighbourhood of New Westminster near the Annacis Island Swing Bridge.

Fire crews, with support from Richmond and Delta firefighters, continued to fight the blaze today, which remained challenging due to burning plastic.

No connection between the two fires has been stated or established.

Meanwhile in a separate arson case,  41-year-old Nathan Macleod pled guilty to two counts of breaking and entering and one count of arson for a fire at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design on October 5, 2019. The fire damaged the building, archives suffered water damage, and classes were cancelled for 10 days as crews worked to restore the building.