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Webb found guilty on arson charges

Posted at 3:01 PM, Nov 16, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-16 19:12:45-05
Webb found guilty on arson charges
Webb found guilty on arson charges

A Great Falls man who started a camper on fire in May has been found guilty.

On Thursday, a jury found James Webb guilty of three felony counts of arson.

According to court documents, two men had an ongoing argument over ownership of the camper.

Webb went into the camper to get some clothes and was going to wait around the corner for police to arrive.

That is when someone noticed smoke coming from the camper.

Sentencing has not yet been scheduled.






(MAY 29, 2018) James Webb has been arrested for felony criminal endangerment and arson in connection with a camper that caught fire in Great Falls on Sunday.

Great Falls Fire Rescue and the Great Falls Police Department responded to the area 9th Street North and 6th Avenue North for a report of a camper on fire just before 5 p.m.

The fire was extinguished before spreading to any other properties, although the flames did reach one tree.

The camper was deemed to be a total loss.

According to the GFPD, two men had an ongoing argument over ownership of the camper and evidence was found of an accelerant being used to start the fire.

GFPD said video from a surveillance camera shows Webb leaving the camper moments before the fire started.

Court documents note that firefighters were concerned about the reported ammunition inside the camper, which they said could “cook off” and shoot indiscriminately around the area. There were also propane tanks inside the trailer which could have exploded and fueled the fire.

Webb, 49 years old, is scheduled to make his initial court appearance on Tuesday afternoon.

According to the Montana Department of Corrections, Webb, 49 years old, has convictions in Cascade County for the following offenses: criminal endangerment; DUI (4th or more); theft; escape; burglary; criminal mischief.

Prosecutors requested that bond for Webb be set at $25,000.