Judge raises bond for Corbin arson suspect

 Jimmy P. Johns, Jr. admitted to police he started the fire that destroyed the home at 1003 Hillside Street in Corbin Friday night. Tuesday morning, District Court Judge Fred White took additional steps to ensure Johns will remain in jail while his case goes through the legal process, increasing Johns’ bond from $50,000 to $75,000 cash.

Johns, 21, of Corbin, pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree arson, second-degree burglary and second-degree fleeing or evading police.

Even though Johns has confessed to the crime, Kentucky law does not permit him to plead guilty to felony charges while the case is in district court.

John will return to court Tuesday for a preliminary hearing to determine if the case should be presented to a Whitley County Grand Jury.

Corbin Firefighters were called to the scene about 7:50 p.m. and were on the scene within two minutes.

"The guys on duty said they could see it burning from the station," Chief Barry McDonald said.

McDonald added that the home, which belonged to Earl Karr, was not occupied, but was being used for storage.

An unidentified caller told Corbin dispatchers that he/she had seen two people running from the scene just as the fire became visible. The caller identified one of them as Johns while describing the other as a juvenile with black hair.

While firefighters continued their efforts to extinguish the blaze, Corbin Police patrolled the area in search of Johns and the juvenile.

The juvenile was arrested first.

Officer Tim Baker stated in his arrest report of Johns that the juvenile told police he and Johns had broken into the home and Johns had gone into another room for several minutes before they left.

"The juvenile also reported as they ran off, he looked back and saw the house was on fire," Baker stated in the report.

Police found and arrested Johns about 8:45 p.m. at the corner of 5th and Oak Street.

Johns is being held in the Whitley County Detention Center.