Busby
A Greenwood man is facing an arson charge after police say he lit his own apartment on fire in April.
Casey K. Busby, 37, was charged with arson, a Level 4 felony in Johnson County Circuit Court on Aug. 17. He was arrested on Saturday.
First responders were called to the 1300 block of Countryside Drive in the Yorktowne Farms Apartments complex for an apartment fire around 3:50 p.m. on April 8. When firefighters arrived, they found smoke showing from a two-story apartment building, according to a Greenwood Fire Department report.
When firefighters entered the apartment, they found a fire on a stove in the kitchen, which appeared to be intentional. The fire was contained to that room, the report says.
When one firefighter arrived on scene, they were approached by a white man with a book under his arm. The man asked the firefighter if 911 was available, and later told the firefighter that he had set a fire in his bedroom. The firefighter then asked the man to stand out of the way and wait until someone could talk to him, the report says.
Later, after police had arrived at the scene, an officer escorted a resident to police and fire personnel. The resident, identified as Busby, was known to police and fire departments through previous interactions. Busby relayed that he told a firefighter that he started the fire on purpose, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Officers then asked Busby how the fire started, and he said that his father and told him to do it. However, Busby’s father has been dead for 12 years, the affidavit said.
Busby continued, saying that he lit a cigarette and placed his clothing on top of it. Police say Busby made statements about being told to kill and not kill certain people. Police also found a note inside the apartment that mentioned losing custody of a child and the phrase “no longer drink, fill out form,” according to the affidavit.
The conversation led police to have Busby placed in a mental healthcare facility on an involuntary hold, court documents say.
Nearby residents who lived in Busby’s eight-unit building were evacuated but were not displaced by the fire, as it was contained to one room in his unit, according to the fire report. The complex manager told the fire department there was about $10,000 in damage to Busby’s apartment, the report says.
Busby was also evicted from the complex following the fire and he was booked into the Johnson County jail under a Seymour address.
Following charges being filed on Aug. 17, a warrant was issued for his arrest the next day and he was arrested on Saturday. He was held with a $1,200 as of Saturday, booking records show.
