KINGMAN – A man who set fire to a maintenance facility building on the Mohave County Adult Detention Center campus in Kingman was released from custody following a two-month jail stay on Tuesday, April 24. His same day release from the Detention Center was a condition of the plea agreement that John Williamson, 57, entered before Judge Billy Sipe.

Williamson pleaded guilty to an attempted jail destruction related charge while arson and criminal trespass counts are dismissed.

Mohave County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) reports reveal Williamson requested and received a ride from a deputy to a downtown Kingman truck stop on Feb. 25. At some point he walked a half-mile or more to the nearby Detention Center, apparently suffering from some paranoid delusion that he was being “chased by people.”

MCSO public information officer Anita Mortensen said security surveillance system footage shows Williamson hopping a fence on the county property before he struck things with a pipe and secured a can of gas that he dumped on the rollup garage door to the maintenance facility, and set it on fire.

Mortensen said Williamson told responding officers he was seeking help and knew they’d come if he raised sufficient ruckus. She said Williamson was difficult to understand and appeared to be under the influence or suffering mental health issues.

Defense attorney Barbara Hull told Judge Billy Sipe that Williamson thought he was “being chased by people in a Camaro” and set the fire to get help, before he used a fire extinguisher to extinguish the flames himself before authorities arrived on scene.

“He was not trying to hurt anyone,” Hull said. “He was trying to get attention I think because he thought he was in danger.”

Judge Sipe said the get out of jail plea is unusually lenient given the nature of the incident and the defendant’s prior criminal history. Nonetheless, he approved the attorney-crafted deal and sentenced Williamson to 60 days already served in custody.

Judge Sipe also placed Williamson on probation for three years, allowing him to return to Las Vegas and reside with his parents. Williamson is also responsible for $410 restitution for property damage.

Dave Hawkins