State Fire Marshal’s office arrested a Kaplan man Saturday who allegedly burned his stepfather’s shed.

45 year old Blaine Romero was booked into the Vermilion Parish jail on one count of simple arson.

Around 5:45 a.m. Saturday, the LAOSFM was contacted by the Kaplan fire department to assist in determining the origin and cause of a shed fire in the 11000 block of Farmer Road in Kaplan.

The shed was located behind a home owned by Romero that his stepfather had recently purchased in a tax sale to keep it in the family after Romero lost it, according to the State Fire Marshal’s office. 

In addition to the fire damage of the shed, investigators also located a trail of burned vegetation between the shed and Romero’s home.

Romero’s stepfather told investigators that Romero had threatened to burn the property when he was informed the stepfather wanted to move a trailer onto the property, the report states. 

Following an assessment of the scene, which included the utilization of K-9 Bono, investigators determined the fire was incendiary.

Due to several active warrants already issued for his arrest, Romero, who was located inside of his home at the time investigators were looking into the fire, was taken into custody.

In an interview with investigators about Saturday’s fire, Romero claimed the vegetation fires were from an attempt to kill spiders.

However, he admitted to setting the shed on fire due to “the spiritual war going on,” the report states.