Distraught man sets bathrobe ablaze at J.W. Mariott, police say

A man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of arson Saturday after locking himself in a downtown hotel room, setting fire to a bathrobe and threatening to kill himself, police said.

Officers responded at roughly 10:30 a.m. to the J.W. Mariott Los Angeles, located in the L.A. Live entertainment complex, after a man who was not a hotel guest was confronted by security officers and chased into a third-floor hotel room.

The man, described by police as distraught, started making “incoherent statements” and setting objects in the room on fire, said Los Angeles Police Sgt. David Lopez. At that point, officers forced their way into the room and detained the man, Lopez said.

Firefighters put out the small fire and took two people to the hospital, said L.A. Fire Department spokesman Erik Scott.

The suspect had consumed “an abnormal amount of pills,” L.A. Police Officer Gregory Baek said.

-- David Zahniser