Pittsburg man faces attempted murder charge

A Pittsburg man is in custody for attempted murder. Read the full press release below:

On Friday, February 1, 2019 at approximately 5:30 p.m., an Officer from the Pittsburg Police Department was dispatched to The Home Place, 616 N. Broadway in reference to an incident that had occurred in the alcove area of the business.

According to the initial investigation, a homeless individual identified as Chrystal Thompson had been sleeping in the alcove area in front of the store. Ms. Thompson approached the owner of the store and indicated she thought a hand warming device she was using to stay warm had accidentally caught her blankets on fire during the previous night and left a burn mark on the tile flooring. The owner of the store reported to police that after reviewing surveillance video, they observed a male subject approach Ms. Thompson while she was sleeping and appeared to intentionally set her blankets on fire, then walking away from the area. The blankets burned for a moment before going out on their own. Subsequently, officers were able to contact Ms. Thompson, who assisted in identifying the subject seen in the surveillance video.

On Saturday, February 2, 2019 at approximately 12:45 p.m., Pittsburg Officers along with a Crawford County Deputy made contact with the suspect at a residence in Pittsburg. The suspect was taken into custody without incident. The suspect is identified as follows:

Richard Lee Dickerson, 60, of Pittsburg. Dickerson was taken to the Crawford County Jail facing charges of Attempted Murder, Aggravated Arson and Criminal Damage to Property.