NICHOLASVILLE — Two men were charged Wednesday night with arson in connection with the Feb. 14 fire that destroyed a vacant apartment building, Nicholasville police said.
The fire was intentionally set by Thomas Aaron Gilbert, 29, of Nicholasville, police said in a release. Police said the owner of the building, Terry Rhodes Carter, 64, of Nicholasville had agreed that Gilbert would share a portion of the insurance money that Carter stood to gain by having the building burned.
Carter was charged with complicity to second-degree arson, a felony punishable by 10 to 20 years in prison. Gilbert was charged with third-degree arson, a felony punishable by one to five years in prison.
No one was hurt in the blaze but the fire was suspicious to investigators because the building had no electricity. The12-unit building at 306 Edgewood Drive in Nicholasville had been recently condemned by authorities and its occupants had been ordered to vacate. The building was a total loss, and has since been demolished.
Nicholasville police said the arrests were the result of a tip given by a person in response to a reward for information offered by the insurance company. The tip confirmed critical information for investigators with the Nicholasville Arson Task Force.
Both men were lodged in the Jessamine County jail.
Greg Kocher covers Jessamine County for the Herald-Leader. Reach him in the Nicholasville bureau at (859) 885-5775.
NICHOLASVILLE — The fire that destroyed an apartment building is being investigated as a possible arson, the deputy fire chief said Tuesday.
Nicholasville Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Baker said investigators determined that there were “multiple points of origin where the fire started.” He would not give any other details.
No one has been charged, but the Nicholasville Arson Task Force and Nicholasville police are investigating, Baker said.
The building at 306 Edgewood Drive was torn down by heavy equipment Tuesday, Baker said, “because it was very unsafe. It’s literally a pile of rubble now.”
No one was hurt in the early Saturday morning blaze. But the circumstances surrounding the fire have been questioned because the 12-unit building had been condemned, was vacant, had no electricity and was scheduled to be sold Friday at a master commissioner’s sale.
James Aaron Clark, 27, of Shelbyville, who confessed to setting nine house fires, was indicted Wednesday for first and second-degree arson and criminal mischief.
Clark, arrested in October after his confession, was indicted on one count of first-degree arson, a felony that carries a penalty of 20 years to life, three counts of second-degree arson, also a felony, one count of first-degree criminal mischief and three counts of third-degree criminal, charges which were also related to the fires.
Read more in the Shelby News-Sentinel
The Associated Press
LOUISVILLE — Authorities say a woman has been charged with arson after investigators said she set fire to a Louisville home she rented.
Louisville Fire and Rescue spokesman Sgt. Sal Melendez says the fire also damaged two neighboring houses.
Forty-seven-year-old Dianne Williamson was charged Wednesday with one count of first-degree arson and two counts of third-degree arson.
Firefighters were called to the fire around 4:15 p.m. Wednesday.
Melendez says Williamson was the only resident of the home where the fire was set. He says that because of the intensity of the fire and the closeness of the buildings, the houses on either side were also damaged.
HAZARD — Police arrested an Eastern Kentucky man early Tuesday morning for allegedly setting fire to a mobile home filled with a family of 10.
Kentucky State Police were called to Lower Lost Creek near the Perry-Breathitt County line before 5 a.m.
When police arrived, members of Laura Campbell’s family were holding Elbert Neace Jr. on the ground. The home was fully engulfed.
The family told police they heard a noise, came outside and the home was on fire. They said Neace, 38, was attempting to leave on a scooter. They grabbed him and held him until police arrived.
Ten people were inside the home at the time, including five children. No one was injured in the blaze, state police said.
The family told police that Neace said he was hired to burn the mobile home. The residence and everything inside was destroyed.
Neace was charged with 10 counts of first-degree arson and 10 counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, state police said. He was put in the Perry County jail.
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