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A Port Arthur man whose home was set to be demolished, allegedly set fire to the structure to avoid paying for the property to be condemned.

This week a Jefferson County grand jury indicted Ricky Glenn Herring, 37, on a charge of arson for an incident that occurred June 5.

An eye witness spoke with a deputy fire marshal three days later and reportedly said he saw Herring start a fire inside some type of container in the garage at 2601 62^nd St.

The witness further stated once the fire was started, Herring walked down the driveway to Garnet Avenue. When the fire began to get larger, Herring took off running north toward 63^rd Street.

The witness reportedly said he had never seen Herring with gasoline cans on the property before but on the night of the fire he saw the man with multiple gas cans start the fire inside the garage.

The deputy fire marshal said he believes Herring started the fire to avoid paying for the property to be condemned.

The property was set to be red tagged and the bidding process to condemn the property was ongoing, the document read.

The city told Herring he would be responsible for the process and Herring allegedly began to condemn the property without proper permits from the city.

He was given a “stop work” order and told not to continue his actions.

Herring’s name is not listed as an inmate at the county jail.

An indictment is not a final conviction of guilt; it is only a ruling by the grand jury that allows the district attorney’s office to proceed with a criminal case.