A guy admitted to setting fire to a Nebraska Walmart while it was full of customers and employees, according to investigators.
William Eckman, 20, has been charged with first-degree arson, terroristic threats, and criminal mischief resulting in a loss of more than $5,000, according to various local publications, including Lincoln’s CBS affiliate KOLN.
The fire started on Sunday.
Just before noon, the York Police Department was called to the city’s Walmart. As officers responded, a city 911 dispatcher reportedly informed them that a guy admitted to starting the fire. That individual is said to have been Eckman.
As the fire spread, the store was forced to evacuate and close.
Eckman was detained when officers found him near dumpsters on the site.
When police interviewed the suspect, he allegedly admitted to knowing there were people inside the store and used knowledge about the consumers’ locations to start the fire, according to local ABC affiliate KHGI.
According to investigators, the defendant reportedly stated information about the fire that only witnesses would be aware of.
According to authorities, the resulting conflagration destroyed over $15,000 in inventory, not including damage to the store itself.
Law authorities requested the public to contribute whatever information they had about Eckman or the events preceding the fire.
The store reopened on Wednesday.
Eckman was taken into the York County Jail on a $2,500 bond and made his first appearance in court on Wednesday.
York lies in the eastern region of the Cornhusker State, approximately 50 miles west of Lincoln.
