Victor Shane Pinckard, 37, of De Soto allegedly tried to set a Festus-area woman’s house on fire. He also continually harassed the woman even after being served an order of protection ordering him to stay away from woman, according to court documents.
Pinckard has been charged with first-degree arson, a class B felony punishable by five to 15 years in prison, and first-degree stalking, a class E felony that carries a penalty of up to four years in prison, court records show.
As of Sept. 20, he was being held without bond at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro, court papers said.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies were called on Sept. 6 to a home in the 1100 block of Sunset Pointe southwest of Festus. Pinckard had gone to the home the day after he received the order of protection telling him to stay away from the woman, according to the case’s probable-cause statement.
After deputies arrested Pinckard, the woman came out of her home and saw burn marks near the front door. Surveillance video showed Pinckard get what appeared to be an air conditioning filter from a trash can on her porch, place it near the home and light it on fire, the report said.
Pinckard allegedly had been harassing the woman for about a month. The two had been in a relationship. He called the Sheriff’s Office eight times in August to check on the woman after she would not respond to his phone calls to her, according to the report.
On Sept. 1, deputies were called to the Festus-area home to remove Pinckard from the property, and he was arrested at the house the next day for alleged harassment and stalking. Pinckard was arrested on Sept. 3 at the home for allegedly trespassing, the report said.
On Sept. 5, Pinckard was given a copy of the protection order, and when he was arrested on Sept. 6, he had the paperwork with him and acknowledged he was violating the order, according to the report.
Pinckard also asked deputies if he would remain in jail while being driven to Jefferson County Jail, and he said, “Because if I don’t stay, I’m coming back here. I love her and want to talk to her,” the report said.