Man accused of trying to set fire to occupied camper in Hartsburg
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A man was charged with two felonies after he allegedly tried to set fire to an occupied camper on Monday night in Hartsburg.
Michael Briggs, 55, of Hartsburg, was charged in Boone County on Tuesday with knowingly burning or exploding and resisting arrest. He is being held at the Boone County Jail on a $10,000 bond. An initial court appearance was held on Wednesday.
The probable cause statement says Briggs used a woman’s phone to call True North of Columbia on Monday night and claimed he was going to kill the victim at the victim’s residence. Briggs allegedly reiterated to the woman that he was going to kill the victim.
Deputies were called around 9:50 p.m. to South First Street in Hartsburg and saw a fire near a camper in a backyard, the statement says. The deputy noted in the statement that he heard a male voice screaming. Briggs allegedly lit a cabinet outside the camper on fire, the statement says.
Briggs allegedly held a gas can and a lighter and continued to pour gas on the fire as the deputy told him to put the can down, court documents say.
Briggs allegedly emptied the can before approaching the deputy with his hands behind his back, the statement says. The deputy wrote that Briggs tried to get away while the deputy put handcuffs on him.
The victim told law enforcement that Briggs had “threatened to burn her stuff in the past,” court documents say.