Accused arsonist pleads guilty

A man accused of setting fire to a Cape Girardeau apartment bathroom pleaded guilty Tuesday to felony arson.

Anthony R. Williams, 20, of 902 Jefferson Ave., entered his plea before Circuit Judge David A. Dolan in Mississippi County. The case was being held in Mississippi County following a change of venue motion.

The defendant was scheduled to be sentenced by Dolan May 9, and he could receive between 5 and 15 years in prison, according to Cape County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle.

Williams admitted to police that on Aug. 10 he ignited a hand towel in a bathroom at 401 S. Pacific St.

The defendant set the lit towel in a linen closet, sprayed furniture polish on it and left the scene.

The fire burned a hole into the living room floor of an apartment a floor above the bathroom. No one was injured.