Chicago police on Wednesday arrested a man sought in connection to a Rogers Park blaze that resulted in the death of a firefighter earlier this week.
An internal bulletin issued Tuesday said detectives were “seeking to locate and interview” the man in relation to firefighter Michael Altman’s death earlier that day. The man was arrested on a warrant Wednesday at Thorek Memorial Hospital, according to police records obtained by the Sun-Times.
The Sun-Times isn’t identifying the man because he hasn’t been arrested or charged in relation to the fire.
He has been arrested at least three times since July 2025, according to Cook County court records. In October, he was placed under court supervision for a year after pleading guilty to retail theft.
The warrant was issued in January after he failed to appear in court to face charges of retail theft and possession of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia. He previously had the same list of charges dropped in another case, records show.
The department’s arson unit was investigating Monday’s fire, according to a police report. The cause of the blaze hasn’t been announced, and the results of Altman’s autopsy were pending, officials said.
A police spokesperson said an internal investigation had been opened into the release of the bulletin identifying the person of interest after it was posted online. The investigative document “was not intended for public release,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
“At this time, we have no further information to release regarding the death investigation as it remains ongoing,” the spokesperson added.
Altman was battling a fire Monday morning when he fell from the first floor of a Rogers Park four-flat into the basement. He suffered burns to 90% of his body, a police report says. Altman, 32, was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on Tuesday morning, officials said.
He came from a storied Chicago Fire Department family. His father rose to the rank of battalion chief, and his grandfather ran the department under Mayor Richard M. Daley.
After Altman’s death, Mayor Brandon Johnson told reporters the city “not only lost a public servant, but we lost a hero.”
Johnson joined Fire Commissioner Annette Nance-Holt and other officials outside Stroger before a procession took Altman to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
“Let this be a constant reminder of how important it is that we continue to put our arms around our first responders and continue to support them,” the mayor said.
A visitation and funeral services will be held for Altman next week at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel.
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