A Sunday-night fire and two fires Monday morning likely are related, according to authorities.

At 8:40 p.m. Sunday, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a woods fire on U.S. Highway 264 East near Terra Ceia Road.  Volunteer firefighters from Pinetown, Pantego, and Belhaven Fire Departments responded to extinguish the blaze. The North Carolina Forestry Service was notified and responded to the scene as well.

The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a woods fire on Possum Hill Road in Bath at 7:44 a.m. Monday. The Bath Fire Department and the North Carolina Forestry Service responded to the scene. Due to the suspicious nature of the fire, deputies and investigators responded to the area, conducted interviews, and collected evidence.

Thirty minutes later, the Sheriff’s Office received a report of an abandoned building fire on Peoples Road in Bath. The Bath Fire Department and Beaufort County Emergency Management responded to the scene to fight the blaze. Investigators and deputies also responded to the area and additional interviews were conducted and evidence was gathered.

The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation was called to assist in processing the fire scene.

Last week, Todd Austin Jarvis, 26, of Elliott Road, Bath, was charged with several counts of burning certain buildings and several counts of felony breaking and entering. The charges stem from a series of arsons in Beaufort County that began last month. Jarvis is a former Kinston police officer. He was fired from the Kinston police force.

Jarvis is scheduled for a probable-cause hearing March 31.

After being fired from the Kinston force in 2008, Jarvis worked as a deputy sheriff in Greene County. Later, in 2010, he worked as a correctional officer at the Eastern Correction Institution. He resigned Aug. 17, according to the N.C. Department of Correction.

Anyone with information about these fires is asked to call the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office at 252-946-7111 or Beaufort County Crime Stoppers at 252-974-6400. Crime Stoppers will pay up to a $1000 reward for information that leads to an arrest in this case. Callers do not have to give their name to receive a reward.