Hiawatha man charged in connection with December meth fire

CEDAR RAPIDS - A Hiawatha man has been charged in connection with a December mobile home fire started by a meth lab.

According to public safety spokesman Greg Buelow, Cedar Rapids firefighters were called to a manufactured home fire at 132 Summer Circle NE on Dec. 3, 2014 at 9:25 a.m. Responding crews found the mobile home to be fully involved. Firefighters made a defensive attack since a majority of the home was on fire.

Buelow said an occupant of the home, 39-year-old Brett Neal, claimed to be sleeping when the fire started. He escaped the home before the fire department arrived and was evaluated on the scene by medical personnel. Neal declined a transport to the hospital.

Police said after they extinguished the fire, a dog was found dead inside the mobile home. The siding on two adjacent mobile homes was melted by the fire, Buelow said.

Buelow said 25 minutes after the initial call, a medical call came in at 1549 Sixth Ave. SE. Buelow said the patient, 35-year-old Jonathan P. Soucie, of Hiawatha, told first responders he was carrying a small cup of gasoline to start a wood-burning stove in the garage. Soucie allegedly told firefighters he was smoking while carrying the cup, stumbled and spilled the gas, which ignited.

However, when firefighters went to the garage to check for any damage, they found no evidence of fire or the smell of gas or smoke, Buelow said. Additionally, Soucie's account of what happened didn't mesh with his injuries.

After Soucie was released from the hospital, he was interviewed by fire investigators. At that time, he admitted that he was at Neal's house and that the duo were cooking meth in the residence. Soucie told the investigators a fire started in the bathroom where the bottle used to make meth was placed before he went to the couch and fell asleep.

As a result of the fire investigator's inquiry, Soucie was arrested on charges of second-degree arson and manufacturing a controlled substance. Buelow said Thursday that Neal has not been charged at this time.