ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — A man is behind bars after he reportedly attempted to set a St. Augustine Walmart on fire, threatened police with a metal tire plug and vandalized a Crime Stoppers kiosk, according to the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office.
Deputies said the incidents all happened Sunday morning between 6:30 a.m. and 8:40 a.m.
The sheriff's office said Matthew Pierce Payne, 44, was at a Walmart at 2355 US 1 S. when he reportedly grabbed lighter fluid from a shelf and poured it on the floor of the store.
Payne then grabbed a candle from a shelf, lit it, threw it on the floor and poured more fluid, according to the arrest report.
Payne is also accused of throwing a water bottle at deputies as well as pulling out a 5-inch metal tire plug and threatening to harm them with it.
Deputies said Payne also grabbed a Crime Stoppers kiosk, property of the sheriff's office, and threw it to the ground, causing damage.
Payne has been charged with assault on an officer, criminal mischief and arson. Payne remains in the St. Johns County Jail where he is being held without bond, according to the sheriff's office.