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Man Charged in Springfield, Missouri, ArsonA 19-year-old man has confessed to setting a fire that caused more than $500,000 in damage at the Springfield–Greene County (Mo.) Library District’s main branch January 19. Police said Jared Pearce Rupp—who was arrested February 7 and later released on $10,000 bond—wasn’t motivated by a grudge against the library as they had first suspected. Rather, Rupp told investigators he set the fire in an attempt to hide the fact that he had used a library computer January 18 to post a chat-room message in which he said he knew who had set a fire that destroyed a local business, the Springfield News-Leader reported February 9. “There was a specific goal Mr. Rupp had to destroy computer evidence,” said Police Chief Lynn Rowe. “This was not an attack on the library per se, although they were ultimately the victims.” “It’s a tremendous relief to know we were not the prime target,” commented Library Director Annie Busch. “It’s sad to know we were the victim.” However, librarians were still puzzled why Rupp burned staff computers. “The computers he burned weren’t the public computers,” said computer services manager David Patillo, “so they wouldn’t have been the one he was on anyway.” Rupp, who is scheduled to appear in court March 9, faces charges of second-degree arson and burglary, punishable by up to seven years in prison and a $5,000 fine. Posted February 13, 2004. |
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