Man charged with arson after fire at Independence school
INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (KCTV) - An Independence man is facing felony charges following an arson at a school.
A probable cause document filed Tuesday in Jackson County alleges that 37-year-old Joshua Ryan Pennington committed second-degree arson at Nova Center School on Hardy Avenue in Independence.
Pennington is accused of setting a fire that damaged a classroom, air conditioning unit, window and ceiling tile at 9:50 p.m. on Sunday, May 4. Court documents say the Independence Fire Department responded Sunday night and found a burning bench on the east side of the school building.
Firefighters extinguished that fire and entered the school “to rid the building of smoke which was in the building,” the probable cause document said.
Monday morning, an assistant principal at the school called police to report damage to the aforementioned classroom and other appliances. Two hours later, the assistant principal called police again regarding a man who was found sleeping on a stairwell in the northeast corner of the building.
Police said the witness identified the man -- now identified as Pennington -- as the man he believed was on camera during a review of video surveillance of when the fire began. Pennington was taken into custody by IPD and had two active warrants.
IPD said Pennington was wearing the same shorts, same shoes and had the same stature as the man seen setting the fire. Surveillance video showed the man locating several items behind the school and moving them next to the building under a window to place into a pile. From there, the man lit the items on fire, which police say “grew quickly.”
Fire damage to the school was estimated to be around $4,000 due to damage to the windows and air conditioning unit.
Pennington has previously been convicted of property damage, domestic assault, tampering with a vehicle and more.
He’s in custody in the Jackson County Detention Center and being held on a $30,000 bond.
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