Man accused of setting corrections center fire charged

WAHPETON, N.D. (AP) — A Fairmount man accused of setting a fire at the Richland County corrections center has been charged with arson. Prosecutors say the 24-year-old man carried a backpack into the Law Enforcement Center in Wahpeton Tuesday (March 1, 2022), removed a “cylindrical container” and lit it on fire in the lobby. The fire damaged the lobby and sent smoke throughout the building, causing officials to move the jail’s 15 inmates to other county lockups. Authorities say the defendant holed up in his home Thursday when police arrived and was finally arrested after about five hours. The standoff caused Fairmount Public Schools to temporarily lock down as a precaution.