MARTIN CO., KY MAN ARRESTED AFTER SETTING FIRES IN BIG SANDY REGIONAL DETENTION CENTER LOBBY BATHROOMS SHORTLY AFTER RELEASE FROM ARREST 12 HOURS EARLIER ON THE PREVIOUS DAY
MAY 9, 2026 – written by WADE QUEEN
THE CASE OF PUBLIC DRUNK TURNED FIREBUG: DILLON MICHAEL SMOTHERS, 21, OF INEZ, KENTUCKY (OR OF BOONS CAMP, KY)
A Martin County, Kentucky man was arrested shortly after his release from the Big Sandy Regional Detention Center in Paintsville after he allegedly set fires in the jail’s lobby bathrooms before leaving.
According to Johnson County Court documents, on Thursday,May 7, Dillon Michael Smothers, 21, of Inez, KY., (who also had an address listed on court documents as of both Boons Camp, KY.) was arrested on a charge of public intoxication.
Johnson County Sheriff’s Deputy Adam Stanley wrote that he arrested Smothers after a Staffordsville resident called to report that a suspicious person was on her porch and that he may need assistance.
Dillon Smothers, according to the arrest citation, told deputy Stanley he was “only a little high and not very high,” and that he had walked from a rehab facility on U.S. 460.
Deputy Stanley wrote that Dillon Smothers showed signs of intoxication.
According to Big Sandy Regional Detention Center records, Dillon Smothers was lodged in the jail at 6:49 P.M., and was released at 4:07 A.M. on Friday, May 8.
According to an arrest citation written by Paintsville Police Officer Dewey Meade, the agency received a call from the jail at approximately 6:45 A.M., on May 8, reporting that Dillon Smothers had set two fires in the lobby bathrooms. BSRDC personnel, the citation said, reported that the fires had caused smoke to fill the lobby, and damage was noted to the sink in the women’s bathroom.
Officer Dewey Meade wrote that he located Dillon Smothers at a gas station, at which time Dillon Smothers was found to have a lighter in his hand.
Dillon Smothers, the arrest citation said, told officer Meade he had started a fire inside the jail because he was cold.
Dillion Smothers was booked back into the jail at 7:28 A.M., on a charge of second-degree criminal mischief, where he still remains incarcerated, according to BSRDC records.
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