Fireman in custody after allegedly setting house on fire

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- A Butler County volunteer firefighter was arrested this week after he allegedly set fire to his home with his son inside.

The Poplar Bluff Fire Department responded at 6:38 a.m. Tuesday to a structure fire at the 2018 Hillsdale home occupied by Dallas Lee Tanner.

After firefighters put out the fire, Jason Dunn, an investigator for the State Fire Marshal's Office, was called to the scene.

Poplar Bluff fire chief Ralph Stucker said Dunn was called because the "pattern of the fire, what we saw on the floor" needed further investigation.

Poplar Bluff police detective Scott Phelps also assisted Dunn in the investigation.

According to Phelps' report, Tanner initially told the detective he was asleep with his 6-year-old son on the living room couch when he was awakened by the dog barking and "heavy smoke" in the house.

Tanner reported getting his son out of the house, taking him to his neighbor's house and grabbing his portable radio from his truck.

After speaking with Tanner, Phelps said, he relayed the information he learned to Dunn, who "stated the fire did not appear accidental" and he wanted to speak with Tanner again.

Tanner, Phelps said, agreed to meet the officers at the police station, where he was told of his rights and signed a waiver.

"Officer Dunn explained to Tanner that his original story did not match what he found while processing the fire scene," Phelps said. "Officer Dunn explained that the fire was intentionally set, and the only two people in the house were him and his son."

After talking about issues in his life, saying he was "struggling with them mentally," Phelps said, Tanner admitted to starting the fire.

"He figured that if his house had smoke damage, he could move away, and it would be safer for him and his son."

To "smoke up the house," Tanner reported he lit a roll of toilet paper and threw it in a clothes basket.

"He then walked to the other end of the house, took his son outside and called the police department," Phelps said.

After the interview, Tanner, 35, was arrested on suspicion of first-degree arson and first-degree endangering the welfare of a child.

He was booked and taken to Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center, where he signed himself in for evaluation.