FARMINGTON — A Carthage man has been indicted on charges that he set fire to  his father’s pickup truck Dec. 15 in Carthage.

A Franklin County grand jury indicted Spencer C. Knox, 23, on Jan. 18 on two counts of Class A arson, a Class C charge of aggravated criminal mischief and a Class E charge of operating after suspension.

Knox lived with his parents at the time of the fire.

State fire officials and Maine State Police investigated and went to the Knox residence Dec. 21 to arrest Spencer Knox on a warrant charging one count of Class A arson. State fire investigator Kenneth MacMaster went to the back of the house and caught Knox trying to escape from the home, state fire investigator Jeremy Damren said previously.

Knox was released from Franklin County Detention Center on $50,000 worth of real estate Jan. 9.

Trooper Andrew Hardy followed up on information he received about a pickup truck being burned in Carthage after he responded to a fight between Knox and his parents on Dec. 15, Damren wrote in his affidavit filed in a Farmington court.

Knox’s parents told investigators their son took the truck without permission.

Damren and MacMaster examined the truck, which was found parked on a dead-end dirt road or driveway, one mile from the Knox residence.

“It was determined that the fire originated in the cab of the pickup truck and the fire was determined to be (set),” according to Damren’s affidavit. “The truck was extensively burned and should be considered a total loss.”

A conviction on a Class A charge is punishable by up to 30 years in prison and a $50,000 fine, while a conviction on a Class C charge is punishable by a maximum five years in prison and $5,000 fine. A Class E charge carries a penalty of up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

dperry@sunmediagroup.net

Spencer Knox (Franklin County Detention Center)

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