Man Accused of Setting Fire to Stranger’s Car Formally Charged

(KNSI) — The man accused of setting fire to a woman’s car while she was in it Monday morning has been formally charged.

According to the criminal complaint, officers responded to the Walgreens store on Division Street and 25th Avenue in St. Cloud just before 10:15 after a woman called and said someone poured rubbing alcohol on her 2024 Hyundai Tuscon and lit it on fire as she was sitting in the pharmacy drive-thru. Police say she was able to put it out with a bottle of water she had, but not before moderate damage was done. The woman gave police the description of the suspect, whom she did not know. A few blocks away, investigators found James Lund. The woman positively identified him as the man who set her car on fire.

When police found Lund, they say he initially yelled at police, clenched his fists and made gestures as if he were ready to fight. An officer pulled her Taser, and they say Lund calmed down enough to be taken into custody. During a search of Lund, police allegedly found two amphetamine pills and a substance weighing 2.82 grams that field tested positive for methamphetamine.

Lund has been charged with second degree arson, and two counts of drug possession.

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