Arson

Fireworks could be to blame for a wheat field fire in northern Sedgwick County Monday afternoon. The fire started in the 13000 block of East 69th St. North. Fire crews say they found evidence of fireworks close to the field. An arson investigator is looking into whether fireworks were the cause. "We have witnesses who said they saw people lighting fireworks in this area but none that saw the fire start," explains Division Chief Eddie Fajardo. The landowner says he's lucky he has already harvested his wheat, but relies on the stubble to retain moisture and keep the field from eroding.

A former principal in the Stanton County school district says he was forced to resign because he is black and has filed a racial bias complaint because of it. Craig Butler II left the district after he was convicted in June of felony arson for torching his then-wife's car.  He also was found guilty of misdemeanor property damage and was placed on probation. Butler  has filed a complaint to the Kansas Human Rights Commission, saying he was forced out of his job  because of his race.

Wichita police arrest a 58-year-old man after a fire at a motel on N. Broadway late Thursday.  Someone called 911 after seeing a flaming object thrown from a window of the Auto Motel in the 1200 block of N. Broadway. Police went to the motel where they found out a man was mixing chemicals to try and start a fire and see the reaction.  Some of those chemicals spilled and caught something on fire.  The man threw that flaming debris out the window. Police don't believe the man intended to set the room on fire.

An early morning house fire in El Dorado sends a man to the hospital in critical condition. A fire captain tells us someone else in the house woke up smelling smoke and found the fire. It happened around 3:30 Thursday morning in the 400 block of West Kansas. He dragged the victim out of the house and made sure another two were up and out of the house. The victim was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. The other man refused treatment at the scene. Early estimates put damage at 15-20 thousand dollars.

Scott Community High School won't be able to use a building it calls "The Annex" for at least the rest of the school year. The building caught fire around 11:45 p.m. Monday.  Scott City's volunteer fire department responded and put out the fire. Superintendent Bill Wilson says the building is sealed and now the district is waiting for the insurance company to take a look.  Wilson says the building is damaged.  He doesn't know about the contents of the building. Industrial arts, traditional arts, vocational agriculture and aerobics classes are held in the building.

For the second time this week Wichita firefighters put out a fire at a south side home. Fire crews were called to the home in the 1400 block of east Catalina just before 6:00 Friday morning. When they arrived they found heavy flames coming from the back of the home. The fire did $45,000 in damage before crews could get it out. Firefighters put out a fire at the same home Wednesday afternoon. Captain Stuart Bevis says that fire was smaller. Investigators determined that fire to be arson.

The Kingman man charged with killing his wife and setting their home on fire made a brief court appearance Friday. The judge in Brett Seacat's case heard from lawyers on both sides about a few issues before his preliminary hearing. Judge Solomon set a preliminary hearing date of November 29 at 9:30.  During the hearing, the judge heard two motions - including one to reduce Seacat's bond. The judge denied that motion.  He did grant a motion to delay another motion because lawyers said evidence was not yet available.

"Usually I'm the guy on my cell phone calling in a report about a fire," said owner of Ad Astra Broadcasting Cliff Shank.  But this time, the people who report the news become news.  A fire overnight gutted a building on Main Street in Hutchinson.  It housed four radio stations that have been on the air for 25 years. "It's pretty devastating to say the least," said Shank.  Not only did the fire gut a quarter of a million dollars in radio equipment, it also burned up history.  "There were a lot of memories in there.  When they brought up the back hoe and parked it, I started crying," Shank said.

Investigators say an electrical problem is likely the cause of a fire at a south Wichita restaurant. Crews doused flames at the Heritage Restaurant Friday. All tallied damage estimates are a quarter of a million dollars. The fire marshal tells us he doesn't suspect arson and he's ruled out every other cause except an electrical problem. He hopes an inspector for the insurance company can find a more exact cause. ------------------------------ Original Story, February 18 A fire in a southeast Wichita causes more than $100,000 in damages to the Heritage Restaurant, 4558 S. Broadway.

Ivan Kelley will never forget the night his business burned to the ground. “From 3:30 to 4:30 I sat there and watch my store burn down, It was horrible,” says Kelley. Things got worse for Kelley. The fire was ruled arson and Kelley became a suspect, especially in the public's eye, after serious tax issues were revealed.      “There were tax issues and people thought he burned his building down because of tax issues,” says Kelley. Five years later, investigators officially cleared Kelley as a suspect.