An Ellettsville man told Greenwood police he intentionally set fire to his work van on Thursday because he didn’t want to work.
David R. Wilson, 45, was arrested on an arson charge, a Level 4 felony.
The Greenwood Fire Department responded at 12:39 p.m. to the report of a vehicle fire at a Greenwood auto glass business in the 500 block of Polk Street. The 2017 Chevy Savana 1500 van valued at about $15,000 was deemed a total loss. The fire also caused damage to tools and the building it was parked near, according to a Greenwood Police Department report.
Greenwood police were called just before 3 p.m. to the glass shop. The business owner and a manager told police surveillance caught the entire incident on camera, and suggested Wilson, an employee, set fire to the van.
The video shows Wilson drive the van into the parking lot and park it in front of the building. He grabs a piece of paper or paper towel off the dash and crumples it up. He leans over to the passenger side of the van and the paper or paper towel disappears under the dash, according to the report.
Wilson then gets out of the van, walks around to the passenger side, opens the door and bends over underneath the front passenger dash, the report said.
He moves around to the back of the van, opens the trunk, removes a glass pane and walks inside the building. Less than a minute later, the van starts showing signs of smoke, according to the report.
Wilson is seen in the video walking out of the building briefly, looking at the van, then going back inside. A minute later, he reemerges with a fire extinguisher, the report said.
A Greenwood detective and fire marshal determined the fire was not accidental, according to the report.
Wilson initially told police he smelled something "hot" on his drive from Martinsville, but he did not know what started the fire and was unfamiliar with the van because it was not his normal work van.
The evidence told a different story, police said.
"I did it," Wilson said.
He told police he had been struggling at work and was dealing with some personal issues. He was stressed and did not want to work that day, he said.
He explained how he set the fire, which coincided with what was seen on the surveillance video, but said he did not intend for the entire van to burn, the report said.
Wilson was taken to the Johnson County jail and released on $6,600 bond.
