A white man has been charged with arson after allegedly setting three fires in one night at an apartment complex in Nashville, Tennessee. The most disturbing part of his alleged crimes is that he tried to get an imaginary Black person to take the fall for one of them.
On Saturday (Dec. 14), Joshua Spain, 26, was arrested and charged with arson, disorderly conduct and making a false report per WKRN. On Dec. 5, local firefighters were called to put out two dumpster fires in the parking lot of an apartment complex.
Just one hour later, firefighters were called back to the same apartment complex where a structure was also set on fire. Though it took workers hours to fully extinguish the fire, no injuries were reported.
It didn’t take long for a suspect to be reported by the Nashville Fire Department and arrested for questioning.
Officials said a man wearing a black cowboy hat and dark clothing was at the scene of the fire as well as the two dumpster fires an hour before at the same location. The suspect, later identified as Spain, reportedly explained to fire investigators that he was responsible for the dumpster fires.
However, Spain insisted that the apartment fire was set by a Black man using an antifreeze bottle and a green lighter. What’s even more appalling is that Spain went on to say that he was assaulted by the man when he tried to intervene.
Spain also said he called 911 to report what happened, but hung up after he described the alleged suspect. Despite his claims, a man matching Spain’s description was caught on video surveillance footage where the fires took place.
Investigators also stated that “The footage provided no evidence of any Black male in the area before or during the three fire incidents.”
Video evidence, witness statements and Spain’s testimony led police to believe that “the suspect [Spain] is responsible for setting the dumpster fires and the fire at the apartment building.”
Spain is currently being at a local jail on $47,500 bond.
