Ferguson charged with arson in connection to Iconic Village apartment fire

A 30-year-old man was arrested early Wednesday in connection to the Iconic Village apartment fire in San Marcos in July 2018 that killed 5 and injured many others, one critically.

San Marcos Fire Department Chief Les Stephens and Fire Marshal Jonathan Henderson said Jacobe De Leon O’Shea Ferguson was arrested somewhere between his place of residence and his home in Austin. 

During a press conference held Thursday at the San Marcos Fire Department with city officials, Hays County officials and state investigators present, investigators involved in the nearly five-year-old case spoke about the details and work that led to the arrest.

Ferguson is charged with arson causing bodily injury or death, a first degree felony, and is currently housed in the Hays County Jail. No additional information about a possible bond or whether Ferguson is represented by an attorney was available on the Hays County Jail website.

Ferguson, a former Texas State student who claims to be a graduate of the university on his LinkedIn profile, was living in one of the apartment facility’s buildings at the time of the fire, though not Building 500 that was destroyed in the blaze, officials said.

Dru Estes, 20, of San Antonio; Belinda Moats, 21, of Big Wells; Haley Michele Frizzell, 19, of San Angelo; David Angel Ortiz, 21, of Pasadena; and James Phillip Miranda, 23, of Mount Pleasant, all lost their lives in the fire, one of the worst in San Marcos history. Zachary Sutterfield, sustained third-degree burns to nearly 70 percent of his body and a brain injury. Stephens said for members of his department, being part of Sutterfield’s brave fight to survive has been uppermost in their minds and hearts, including attending his recent college graduation. Officials said Ferguson’s arrest occurred on what would have been Estes’ 25th birthday.

A task force organized in San Marcos in 2022 and composed of members of the fire department, the San Marcos Police Department and others involved from the first days of the investigation, looked at the reports and investigation with a “new set of eyes,” and conducted a second set of interviews with witnesses. 

In 2018, Ferguson was one of the individuals interviewed shortly after the fire, but San Marcos Fire Marshal Jonathan Henderson said that investigators ruled him out at the time. Additional information generated by this reinvigorated investigation generated by the task force led to the arrest of Ferguson. 

Henderson said the investigation is ongoing. Additional charges may be pending, but that decision is in the hands of Hays County District Attorney Kelly Higgins and Hays County Assistant District Attorney Gregg Cox.

During the question and answer portion of the press conference Henderson said that they could not discuss the particulars of the case including what accelerant may have been used, the point of ignition or the motive for the arson. 

Attending the press conference were Henderson, San Marcos Director of Communications Lauren Surley, San Marcos Fire Department Chief Les Stephens, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Assistant Special Agent in Charge Robert Topper,  Brian Frizzell, who lost his daughter Haley in the fire; San Marcos Police Chief Stan Standridge, San Marcos Police Assistant Kelly Minor, San Marcos City Manager Stephanie Reyes, Former San Marcos Fire Marshal Kelly Kistner, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent Greg Carlton, Texas Department of Public Safety Texas Ranger Keith Pauska, Coxx, Higgins, Hays County Justice of the Peace Maggie Moreno, San Marcos Deputy Fire Marshal Robert Dallimore and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Senior Special Agent Rey Alatorre.