WACO, Texas (AP) — The suspect in a fire that destroyed all but the outer rock walls of a 111-year-old Texas courthouse is being held on arson charges, authorities say.
Nicholas Miller, who remained jailed Tuesday, was arrested Friday morning after leading authorities on a chase that ended near Waco, 170 miles northeast of Mason, the city where the courthouse was set on fire the night before, authorities said.
Mason County Judge Jerry Bearden has said that the person suspected in the fire at the Mason County Courthouse was also suspected of setting another blaze around the same time at a home about a mile away.
Miller, 41, was being held Tuesday in McLennan County jail on two counts of arson, burglary of a building, unlawful possession of a firearm and evading arrest. He’s being held on $1.8 million bond. Jail records don’t list an attorney for him.
Authorities say that on Friday morning, police in Georgetown, located north of Austin, tried to pull Miller over on Interstate 35, but he did not stop. State troopers later took the lead in the chase, which ended south of Waco after authorities put out spikes, said Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Ryan Howard.
At the time of the fire, the courthouse was being prepared for renovation, so all of the county records had been removed.
