FARMINGTON — A Carthage man is accused of setting a fire to burn his father’s 2008 Ford F-150 pickup on Dec. 15.

Spencer C. Knox, 23, was arrested Thursday night on a charge of arson at his residence where he lives with his parents at 1511 West Side Road in Carthage.

State fire investigators, Jeremy Damren and Kenneth MacMaster of the Office of the Maine State Fire Marshal and Maine State Police Trooper Andrew Hardy went to arrest Knox on a warrant Thursday night and Knox tried to escape through the back of the house, Damren said Friday.

MacMaster had gone around back and caught Knox who was arrested and then taken by Hardy to the Franklin County Detention Center in Farmington, Damren said.

Hardy followed up on some information that he had received about a pickup truck being burned in Carthage. Hardy had responded to a family fight between Knox and his parents on Dec. 15.

Knox’s father told Hardy that his son was causing trouble at the house in the early-morning hours on Dec. 15. It was believed that Knox had taken the truck without his parents’ permission, according to state fire investigator Jeremy Damren’s affidavit. 

Damren and MacMaster examined the truck, which was found parked on a dead-end dirt road or driveway, 1 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.

It was noted that the passenger mirror was missing.

“The truck was extensively burned and should be considered a total loss,” Damren wrote.

Friends of Spencer Knox told investigators that Knox had been drinking the evening of Dec. 14. They also told Damren that Knox’s mental health seemed to be declining. Another told investigators that Knox’s behavior had been escalating.

Friends also told investigators that Knox had driven across a driveway and wooded area at another residence in Carthage and hit a resident’s vehicle there causing minor damage.

Knox appeared before Justice Robert Mullen by videoconference from the jail on Friday morning. 

Mullen set Knox’s bail at the request of Assistant District Attorney Joshua Robbins at $10,000 cash or $50,000 in real estate surety. 

Knox could not enter a plea to the arson charge because it is a felony and he has not been indicted by a grand jury.

Mullen appointed attorney Curtis Rice of Rumford to represent Knox.

A conviction on the arson charge carries up to 30 years in prison and a $50,000 fine.

Knox’s next scheduled court date is May 8 at a Franklin County court.

dperry@sunmediagroup.net

Spencer Knox (Franklin County Detention Center)