Man charged in fatal arson remains behind bars

Published 10:00 am Tuesday, May 15, 2018

A man charged with murder and arson in relation to a string of fires in the Giles County, Tennessee, area is still behind bars, records show.

Edwin Neil King, 19, of Ardmore, Tennessee, was arrested April 19 and charged with one count of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated arson and four counts of arson. He has remained in jail with a bond of $20,000 since his arrest.

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A request for information regarding any upcoming court appearances was not answered Monday.

King was initially arrested by the Ardmore Police Department in relation to at least two arsons, according to Chief James Kennedy. The Tennessee Fire Marshall’s office and Tennessee Bureau of Investigations became involved shortly thereafter.

King’s murder charge is related to a case in which an 83-year-old woman who resided on Pheasant Run died as a result of a fire. Kennedy said first-responders pulled Paulene Shelton from the blaze, but she later died from her injuries at UAB Hospital in Birmingham.

Since January, emergency personnel had responded to 13 fires. According to the TBI, King was identified as a suspect in at least nine of the fires, including the one that killed Shelton.

A grand jury returned indictments against King on April 16, the release said.

Kennedy said investigators believe King used a lighter to set some of the fires, while it is believed some instances involved setting fire to garbage cans near the residence.

He said it is believed King knew Shelton’s family and she was not targeted randomly. He added it is believed King set fire to a chair in Shelton’s garage as he was leaving the residence, and the fire spread to the rest of the home.