Police arrest suspect in Columbia storage fire

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia woman has been charged with setting a fire that ripped through a storage unit last week.

Dionne D. Houston, 44, was arrested Wednesday in the 700 block of Wilkes Boulevard in Central Columbia, the Columbia Police Department said in a news release. She was charged Wednesday with a single count of second-degree arson.

Damage from the Dec. 12 fire at I-70 Mini Storage in the 300 block of Nebraska Avenue appeared to be spread throughout several units. Officials estimated the damage at the time to be about $100,000.

Houston was seen on surveillance video going into and out of the unit several times the night of the fire, according to a probable cause statement. No one else was in the unit, the statement says.

Video shows her crouching at the door as an inconsistent glow grows inside the unit and smoke wafts out, the statement says. Houston can then be seen walking away from the fire while carrying two bags, police say.

Houston denied starting the fire, telling police she had been leaving a nearby gas station when she saw the blaze, according to the statement.

Houston remained in the Boone County Jail on Wednesday afternoon on $10,000 bond.