By Ray King
A $25,000 bond was set Monday for a Pine Bluff man accused of breaking into a house Saturday and starting a small fire.
Pine Bluff District Judge John Kearney set the bond after ruling prosecutors have probable cause to charge Sherman Johnson, 22, with residential burglary and arson.
Reading from an affidavit from Detective Chris Wieland, Deputy Prosecutor Beth Carson said officers were sent to a reported burglary in progress at a house in the 1200 block of West 19th Avenue. When they arrived, a woman who lived at the house said she found Johnson inside the house and he walked off.
Police reported finding a broken window and a brick inside the house.
The victim said she was not able to get into the house initially and a friend who was with her saw an open window and climbed through the window to open the door. The friend, a witness, said he saw a small fire on a gas heater and poured water on it to extinguish the fire.
Carson said Wieland was not able to interview Johnson because he was under the influence of a substance.
Kearney ordered Johnson to have no contact with the victim until the case is settled. The Public Defender’s Office was appointed to represent Johnson.
