A Hermann man who admitted to “maybe” being a “serial arsonist” when he is depressed is charged in a felony warrant with setting fire to the Cat Nap Inn late Friday night.

John P. McPhee, 43, Hermann, was charged Saturday with one count of arson in the second degree, a class D felony, one count of burglary in the second Degree, a class D felony, and one count of property damage in the first degree, a class E felony. Bond was set at $30,000 cash or surety.

Hermann police and fire were dispatched to the inn at 133 East Fifth Street at 11:17 p.m. Friday and arrived to find fire in the structure was fully involved. Investigators reviewed video footage of the scene captured from a nearby residence and learned the suspect was seen entering the unoccupied structure and remaining inside for more than 25 minutes before exiting.

About three minutes after McPhee exited, investigators noted flames were “coming from inside the structure” and a “short period later the structure is noted to be fully involved,” according to the probable cause statement filed by Josh Hall, an investigator with the Missouri State Fire Marshal’s Office.

The report noted the residence was vacant and no utilities were in service at the time the fire took place.

Investigators discovered a door on the east side of the inn had been forced open. Although the door was open, the door knob was still in the locked position.

Damage was extensive, according to Hall’s report. A north wall had collapsed and the rear of the dwelling was near collapsing. Due to the extensive damage and unsafe condition of the structure, the cause was initially listed as “undermined with a criminal investigation.”

Hermann police officer Mason Griffith was able to identify McPhee as the person on the video tape who had entered the building. Hall and Griffith went to McPhee’s residence on Ninth Street and brought him to the police station for questioning.

At 3:52 a.m. Saturday, McPhee was advised of his Miranda warning rights but provided verbal and written waiver of those rights, according to Hall’s report.

McPhee admitted to being at the property which burned without permission. He told investigators he had been drinking and was upset over personal and family problems. While smoking a cigarette on a couch, he used a lighter to set it on fire. He ran out of the house without attempting to put out the fire or call 911.

Hall’s report noted McPhee “admitted to ‘maybe’ being a serial arsonist when he gets depressed.”

The report concluded noting McPhee was charged with arson in the first degree in 2010.

“During the course of the investigation, it was determined that the fire to the structure was intentionally set,” according to Hermann Police Chief Marlon Walker in a press release. “The Missouri State Fire Marshall was contacted and assisted in the investigation. During the investigation a subject was identified as a suspect in arson at the residence. That subject was located at his residence and placed under arrest and later transported to the Crawford County Jail pending warrant application from the Missouri State Fire Marshall Investigator.”

McPhee pleaded guilty in March 2011 to a second-degree arson charge and one count of first-degree property damage from a case which was investigated by Hermann police on Oct. 18, 2010. He was sentenced by Circuit Judge Gael D. Wood to four years in prison  but was granted a suspended execution of sentence and given five years of supervised probation. Court records show McPhee had his probationary period extended in December 2014 to six years which he completed on March 25, 2017.

However, court records indicate his probation was continued in March 2017 following a series of hearings related to his restitution payments. As part of his plea, he agreed to pay restitution of $5,570.

He was ordered to serve shock incarceration periods for probation violations in April 2015 (seven days) and December 2013 (60 days). 

McPhee did not have an attorney listed in court records as of Tuesday.

“I would like to thank the Missouri State Fire Marshall Office, Officer Mason Griffith with the Hermann Police Department, the Hermann Volunteer Fire Department with their quick response and extinguishing the fire and protecting the next door residence from possible damage and to others who helped in the investigation,” said Walker.