Accused Arsonist Arrested in Moundsville Fire
Alan Olson Trending
MOUNDSVILLE - A man has been arrested and charged with first-degree arson after a Sunday morning fire destroyed his home.
Steven Ray McClintock, 51 of Moundsville, was arrested Sunday morning, shortly after police received the call that his house at 1405 Seventh Street was on fire around 6:30 a.m. Moundsville Police Chief Tom Mitchell said McClintock was located across town at the time of his arrest.
Mitchell said that McClintock was one of the co-owners of the residence, and he was believed to be living there at the time.
"His name is on the deed," Mitchell said. "... We found (McClintock) across town. He wasn't in the (vicinity)."
Mitchell said the house was "totalled" and was a complete loss.
According to the Northern Regional Jail's website, McClintock was arrested and is charged with three felonies. McClintock was also allegedly in violation of a previous bond condition, which Mitchell said was from a prior arrest for being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.
In December, the house had suffered a similar fire, causing one unidentified resident to be treated for smoke inhalation, according to published reports. According to VFD fire chief Danny Holmes, a fire had started in the front living room at around 6:15 p.m. Dec. 20 from what was described at the time as an unidentified source.
Firefighters with the Moundsville Volunteer Fire Department said no one was harmed as a result of Sunday morning's blaze, and Moundsville police say that no one was thought to be home at the time that Marshall County 911 received the call.
A rear corner of the house, above the garage, seemed to have suffered the worst of the fire damage, and as of 2 p.m. Sunday was still smoking while firefighters kept an eye on the house from a nearby alley. First-floor and basement windows were broken across the property, which was cordoned off with police tape while investigators from the State Fire Marshal's office arrived on scene.
Representatives from the Moundsville Volunteer Fire Department, the Marshall County Sheriff's Office, and the State Fire Marshal's office declined to comment further on the matter Sunday. The investigation into the fire is ongoing.