The Oxford Fire Department’s assistant chief has been arrested and charged with arson. According to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, 30-year-old Timothy Hora of Oxford has been charged with five counts of arson in the third degree and public intoxication. On March 27th authorities responded to a field fire near 3004 Chambers Avenue Southwest in rural Johnson County. And over the next two weeks the sheriff’s office and Oxford Fire Department responded to seven additional grass and field fires in the Oxford area. Damage was limited to ditches, fields, fence posts, and hay bales. On April 13th, a deputy on patrol found three vegetation fires near Oxford.

The deputy also observed a pickup truck parked near one and a man stomping out the flames. The man was identified as Hora. He was arrested for operating while intoxicated and taken to jail. On April 21, the sheriff’s office and Oxford Fire Department went to two more ditch fires. Through GPS monitoring, the investigation showed that Hora’s vehicle had traveled in the area of the fires and stopped at the locations before the fires were reported. Hora is being held in the Johnson County Jail and bond is $50,000. The State Fire Marshall is assisting with the investigation.