Man sentenced to 12 1/2 years for arson, multiple other offenses

U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. on Wednesday, June 28, sentenced Lucas G. Henson of Iron County, Missouri, to 12 1/2 years in prison for committing arsons at Mark Twain National Forest in Rolla, Missouri, and assaulting a U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officer.

Limbaugh also ordered Henson, 37, to pay the U.S. Forest Service around $7,000 for the cost of fighting the fires he set, which burned a total of 7.61 acres.

Henson was charged with drug offenses and stealing a Ford van Oct. 22 near Poplar Bluff, Missouri. After the van ran out of gas, he stole a Dodge pickup truck, a 9 mm handgun and crossbow and burglarized someone's home.

Henson crashed the truck in Mark Twain National Forest, then started a fire and burned the handgun before fleeing into the forest.

Officers tracked him down, but not before he lit more fires. He was finally caught near the Black River.

Henson pleaded guilty in March to assaulting a law enforcement officer, arson and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Forest Service, the Butler County Sheriff's Office, the Wayne County Sheriff's Office and the state Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Shelton prosecuted the case.