The Huntsville Times (Alabama)
GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. — A captain in the Ruth Volunteer Fire Department near Arab has been arrested in connection with several house fires over the summer.
Steven Christopher Owens, 24, of Arab was charged with five counts of second-degree arson in those fires, Marshall County Sheriff Scott Walls said in a statement Friday.
Owens was being held in the county jail in Guntersville Friday in lieu of a $5,000 bond.
Walls did not release any information about a motive but said more arrests are expected. He said five homes were burned in the Ruth community on Brindlee Mountain — three in July and August and two prior to July.
Walls said none of the homes was occupied when the fires occurred. He said his department began an investigation into the fires after the Ruth Volunteer Fire Department asked his department for assistance four weeks ago.
“Because of this joint operation, sheriff’s investigators were able to close these cases,” he said.
Copyright 2008, The Huntsville Times (Alabama)