GODFREY, Ill. (KTVI) — Authorities are looking for a 34-year-old Illinois man accused of setting fire to his home while his wife and their children were still in the residence.
On Tuesday, the Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office charged Andre Darnell Mathis, who remained at large and was considered armed and dangerous.
The fire occurred Monday around 4 a.m. Deputies with the Madison County Sheriff’s Office were called to the home in Godfrey for a possible domestic disturbance.
The woman who called dispatchers said her husband was acting erratically and was emotionally distraught. She said he was also armed.
Deputies arrived and found seven children near the home’s entryway. Deputies got the children and the mother out of the home safely.
Investigators learned there had been a physical altercation involving the homeowners. The mother told deputies she didn’t know her husband’s whereabouts.
The fire was eventually extinguished, but the home, which had became engulfed in flames, was a total loss.
Mathis is charged with one count of aggravated arson, armed violence, aggravated domestic battery, child pornography and indecent solicitation of a child. His bond was set at $1 million.
The public is urged to take caution if they see him and to notify authorities immediately.
