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Last updated on Tuesday, December 18, 2012
(MITCHELL) - 27-year-old Herman Robbins, of Mitchell, was arrested Friday on charges of arson, intent to defraud, false informing and criminal mischief as a result of him trying to set fire to two vehicles in November.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Robbins attempted to set fire to his own truck and one belonging to his mother-in-law. Lawrence County Police Department Detective Troy Lobosky went to the home of Brenda Davis in the 1800 block of Felknor Road to investigate the attempted arson.
Davis told police Robbins woke her about 1:30 a.m. on November 4th to tell her the truck was on fire. When the woman went outside, she only saw Robbins' truck on fire as he sprayed the vehicles with a hose to extinguish the blaze.
Lobosky then reviewed footage from surveillance cameras Davis had earlier installed because of past vandalism and criminal mischief. Video footage showed Robbins open the hood of his truck and then fire appear as he closes the hood. He then lit something on fire and threw it in the bed of his mother-in-law's truck.
Robbins, during an interview with Lobosky, claimed he saw the vehicle fires from inside the home and then woke up Davis.
Once confronted by the detective, he changed his story and confessed to starting both fires.
Robbins told police his truck had electrical problems he couldn't afford to fix so he decided to burn the truck in order to collect the insurance money to fix the truck.
According to the probable cause affidavit Robbins undid the gas line on his truck and let gasoline splash on the engine to start that fire. And then he lit a gas-soaked piece of cardboard and threw it in the bed of the truck owned by Davis.
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