Sioux Center, Iowa — A Sioux Center man has been arrested on arson charges after a fire in an apartment building in that town.
A criminal complaint filed with the Sioux County Clerk of Court’s Office by the Sioux Center Police accuses 30-year-old Johnathan Hernandez Ramos of Sioux Center of lighting a fire in an occupied building. He was arrested on Sunday.
In his statement, the officer accuses him of intentionally setting a fire in the bedroom of his apartment using a red lighter. The complaint says the fire was ignited against the wall shared with the neighboring unit. The officer says Hernandez Ramos told him that the neighbors had instructed him to start the fire, threatening to kill him or his dog if he did not comply. This allegedly occurred following a disagreement and apparent threats between the defendant and the family residing in the neighboring unit. The officer notes that that family includes minor children.
The officer alleges that Hernandez Ramos has been using methamphetamine for six or seven years and was under the influence of methamphetamine at the time of the incident, having begun using the substance earlier that day.
The statement says that after allowing smoke to accumulate, Hernandez Ramos opened his apartment door and waited for the fire alarms to activate. When the alarms did not sound, he says he manually activated the fire alarm system. As other tenants began evacuating the building, the defendant attempted to enter another neighboring unit but was denied access by that tenant. During the incident, the officer says he slid a bag containing methamphetamine under the door of the unit involved in the earlier disagreement. He says Hernandez Ramos admitted to starting the fire.
The officer goes on to say a THC vape device and additional drug paraphernalia were allegedly located inside the defendant’s apartment. Hernandez Ramos is also said to have admitted to using THC while watching television. The red lighter police believe was used to ignite the fire was recovered just inside the doorway of Hernandez Ramos’s unit, in close proximity to a large kitchen knife and a pellet rifle.
He was charged with first degree arson, a class B felony. If convicted, he could face up to 25 years in prison. He also faces misdemeanor charges of third-degree criminal mischief, possession of cannabidiol, and possession of methamphetamine.
He faces a preliminary hearing on the charges on March 3rd.
At last report, he remained in the Sioux County Jail in Orange City in lieu of a $25,000 cash or surety bond.
KIWA Staff Photo
