A Sundre-area woman fled her home to seek help from neighbours after being doused by fuel during a domestic dispute last week.
The suspect, a Sundre-area male, also poured gasoline in the residence, which ended up catching fire and was almost totally destroyed by the ensuing blaze.
On Thursday, Jan. 7 at about 9:30 p.m., emergency services received a report about a structural fire on a property northwest of Sundre on a rural residence in the Bearberry area along Secondary Highway 584, said police.
The home was engulfed in flames when emergency responders arrived at the scene. A police investigation determined that a 43-year-old man from the Sundre area had doused the house with gasoline as well as a woman resident who was in the home.
The house caught fire after gasoline had been thrown on a wood-burning stove. The 45-year-old woman, who owns the home, managed to escape uninjured and fled to a neighbouring residence for safety. It was at that time the call to 911 was made. The man and the woman are known to one another, said RCMP.
Police located the male near the scene following the incident and placed him under arrest. Sundre RCMP have formally charged Derek Littlejohn with the following six criminal charges: arson causing damage to property, arson causing damage to property occupied by other(s), criminal negligence รณ reckless disregard for life, assault with weapon, forcible confinement and breach of probation.
Littlejohn was remanded in custody and appeared in Didsbury Provincial Court on Monday, Jan. 11 for a show cause hearing.