The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and Eureka Police are searching for a man who is wanted for reportedly setting a home on fire in Eureka and suspected of blowing up a different home, and he was last seen after he allegedly broke into a home’s cellar in the Jefferson County portion of Eureka.
Nicholas Combs, 39, of Eureka reportedly was found in the cellar of a home in the 3300 block of White Oak School Road in the Jefferson County portion of Eureka. The Sheriff’s Office was called at about 1:40 a.m. today, July 2, after the homeowner confronted Combs, who ran away, Undersheriff Tim Whitney said.
Whitney said Combs was naked and appeared to be cleaning himself in the cellar.
“He had moved the washer and dryer and was trying to wash himself off with one of the water lines,” Whitney said.
He said deputies were still searching for Combs today in the Eureka area. Combs is approximately 6-feet tall and weighs approximately 175 pounds.
“There are thousands of acres of wooded area, and that makes it a much more difficult search area,” Whitney said.
The St. Louis Prosecuting Attorney’s Office on Monday, July 1, charged Combs with two counts of first-degree arson, class B felonies that carry a penalty of five to 15 years in prison. He is suspected of blowing up a home in the Jefferson County portion of Eureka and burning a home in the city of Eureka, according to court documents.
A warrant has been issued for his arrest with a $500,000 cash-only bond.
According to the case’s probable-cause statement, Combs was arguing with a woman on June 28 at a home on River Ends Drive in the Jefferson County portion of Eureka. He told the woman he was going to blow up the home.
Eureka Fire Protection District crews were dispatched at 11:16 p.m. June 28 to River Ends Drive after a home exploded, Eureka Fire Assistant Chief Scott Barthelmass said.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Capt. Brian Taylor said on Monday, July 1, that a man, woman and child lived at the residence but were not home at the time of the explosion. He said the woman and child were located after the explosion, but the man had not been found as of Monday.
The probable-cause statement also said the woman Combs argued with went to a house on White Dove Court in Eureka and Combs allegedly told the woman he was going to burn that home down.
On June 29, Combs allegedly threw two Molotov cocktails at the home. One of the Molotov cocktails exploded next to a wall of the home, burning the wall and an air conditioning unit. Another Molotov cocktail was recovered from the roof of the home after it did not explode, the report said.
Two people were in the home when the fire started, but no one was injured, the Eureka Police reported.
Combs is on probation for a burglary after being found guilty in St. Louis County in 2019. He also had been found guilty of another burglary, assault on a law enforcement officer, possession of a controlled substance, second-degree domestic assault and unlawful use of a weapon in Missouri and for manufacturing a controlled substance in Arkansas, according to the probable-cause statement.
As of this afternoon, Combs had not been arrested, Eureka Police Capt. Michael Werges said. Anyone with information about Combs should call either the Eureka Police at 636-938-6600 or the Sheriff’s Office at 636-797-5515.