On June 18, 2026, Kenneth Wayne Willey pled guilty to Arson and was sentenced to 35 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
On January 8, 2023, at about 5 a.m., the owner of an auto shop located on North Highway 87 in Orange checked his camera system and saw that his shop was on fire. When he called the fire department, ESD #3 confirmed that firefighters were already on scene battling the blaze. As the owner continued reviewing video footage, he observed a subject arrive on a bicycle, pour gasoline inside the building, ignite the gasoline, and then flee from the burning structure. The owner saved the videos and later provided them to law enforcement. The building was a total loss.
Investigators with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, working in coordination with fire investigators, determined that a subject riding a bicycle had purchased gasoline at a nearby gas station immediately before the fire. Investigators reviewed surveillance footage from the station and, by comparing the physical characteristics of the individual in the video with those of the defendant, were able to positively identify Willey as the person who committed the arson. Bard Anderson represented the District Attorney’s office.
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