Accused arsonist sets 3 fires to try to force witness to move in with him, GA cops say
A Georgia man accused of setting multiple house fires and kidnapping a witness has been arrested, according to the state’s Office of Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire.
Jason Goolsby, 36, faces arson, kidnapping and other charges after lighting three fires at a home in Molena, Commissioner John King said in a Sept. 20 news release.
The fires were reportedly a ploy to get the witness to move in with him, King said.
The first blaze was reported Aug. 11 on the home’s front porch, though the initial cause was “undetermined,” according to authorities. A second porch fire occurred Aug. 22, and the third happened on Aug. 26.
Investigators didn’t say if or how Goolsby and the victim knew each other.
McClatchy News reached out to the Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner’s office for more information Sept. 23 and was awaiting a response.
The State Fire Marshal’s Office launched an investigation, at the request of the Pike County Fire Department, to determine the causes of the fires, the release said. All three were ruled “incendiary,” or intentionally set, according to authorities.
During the investigation, authorities said they tried contacting a witness who was home at the time of the fires but couldn’t get a hold of them. The person had been missing for almost two weeks, authorities said, and Goolsby was named a person of interest.
Pike County sheriff’s deputies did a wellness check at Goolsby’s home and found the witness, who they said was being forcibly held there.
The witness told deputies that Goolsby acknowledged setting the fires “in an attempt to intimidate the witness into moving out of their current residence and into his own,” authorities said.
“During my time in law enforcement, you never knew when a simple investigation would turn into a life-threatening situation,” King said in the release.
On Sept. 16, deputies spotted Goolsby’s car in Baldwin County and tried to stop it, but he ran, authorities said.
He was arrested after a foot chase and taken to jail, according to the release.
Molena is about a 60-mile drive south from downtown Atlanta.
This story was originally published September 23, 2024 at 10:05 AM with the headline "Accused arsonist sets 3 fires to try to force witness to move in with him, GA cops say."