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Suspects face charges for fire


Two UTM students will face charges for the explosion that burned two buildings on Lindell St. in Martin last week.

Joseph “Joey” Roberts, 24, of Atoka, faces charges of criminal conspiracy, arson, reckless endangerment and fraud. Brandi Byrd, 20, of Paris, will face charges of conspiracy to commit extortion, arson and reckless endangerment.

The fire took out two buildings downtown and took firefighters several hours to contain. Damage caused by the fire is estimated between $300,000 to $650,000.

Roberts, who ran Universal Martial Arts out of 212 Lindell St., took out an insurance policy on the contents of his business for up to $40,000 on Sept. 9.

According to police reports, Roberts and Byrd drove to the business at around 1 a.m.. Roberts then took 15 2-liter bottles of gasoline into the business.

Byrd left while Roberts poured the gasoline in a zig-zag pattern across the floor.

Police say that while Roberts was doing this, Byrd was circling the area as part of the plan to meet up with Roberts near the intersection of North McCombs and Frederick streets.

Police say that once Byrd was in place, she called Roberts to give him the go-ahead.

According to reports, after the call, Roberts trailed the gasoline to the back door and closed the door. He then threw a rock through the glass of the rear door and threw in a road flare.

“The blast threw Roberts across the parking lot about 20 feet,” said Martin Public Safety Director J.D. Sanders.

Roberts then ran from the scene to meet Byrd. According to reports, they then drove to Paris to stay the night at Byrd’s house.

The two were taken to the Henry County Sherrif’s Department 1 p.m. the next day for questioning and were eventually brought back to Martin.

The fire brought in inspectors from state arson investigators and agents with the ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) agency.

A preliminary hearing was held at 1 p.m. Wednesday but were changed due to scheduling conflicts. The hearing has been postponed until Nov. 13.