Two fire investigators are suing the District over allegations that they were punished for blowing the whistle on botched investigations, including in the department’s probe of the blaze that gutted the historic Eastern Market.
Greg Bowyer and Gerald Pennington claim in a federal suit filed Thursday that they were removed from their jobs after they reported that a serial arsonist set fire to the 135-year-old market. The findings contradicted Fire Chief Dennis Rubin’s public assertions that the fire was accidental and caused by electrical problems.
Rubin released a statement calling the allegations “completely baseless.” He said the matter has been forwarded to the inspector general.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives later ruled out electrical problems. Bowyer and Pennington said they provided information that led to an arrest in the fire, but the department did not pursue charges because of another investigator’s errors in handling the arrest, according to the lawsuit.
Bowyer and Pennington, who earn more than $100,000 a year, said they were reassigned to fire hydrant inspections and installing batteries in residents’ fire alarms. Pennington was given the responsibility of passing out snacks to firefighters at fire scenes, the lawsuit alleges.
