Mexico man charged with arson after allegedly setting shed on fire

MEXICO, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Mexico, Missouri, man was charged with second-degree arson after he was accused of setting a shed on fire Friday night in the 800 block of West Liberty Street.

Travis Saylor, 35, was arrested on Saturday and booked into the Audrain County Jail, according to a press release from the Mexico Public Safety Department. He is being held without bond. A confined docket hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Audrain County Courthouse.

According to the probable cause statement, officers were dispatched to a home at 9:12 p.m. Friday in reference to a structure that was on fire. MSPD arrived and saw a detached shed on fire, which they extinguished. A witness told police that another witness allegedly told him that Saylor threatened to burn the shed down, the statement says.

The second witness allegedly told police that Saylor was upset and told her “the shed was done,” and then said he was going to set the shed on fire, the statement says. Saylor allegedly went back inside the residence after a period of time and had a cut on his hand, the statement says. The witness looked outside and saw the shed on fire, the statement says.

Saylor was interviewed by law enforcement and allegedly said he was upset with “people coming and going from the shed” because one of the witnesses was staying there, the statement says. He allegedly told law enforcement that he went outside to get a bag, went back inside the residence and noticed the shed was on fire, the statement says.

Saylor claimed he was smoking a cigarette and lost the “cherry,” the statement says. Police asked Saylor about an injury on his arm and he claimed it was a burn he received after the fire while sleeping next to a space heater, the statement says. Court documents say he told law enforcement he believed he was the last person at the shed before it caught fire.