Man accused of arson after Kettering house fire enters plea

KETTERING — A man accused of intentionally setting a fire inside a Kettering home has entered a plea.

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Nicholas Flowers, 35, pleaded guilty to a felony count of burglary via a bill of information Wednesday in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court, according to court records.

As part of his plea, two counts of aggravated arson were dismissed.

News Center 7 previously reported that Kettering firefighters responded on July 3 to the 2100 block of E. Bataan Drive on reports of a house fire.

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Flowers has been accused of setting a fire in the basement of the home while two people were sleeping in the home, according to an affidavit and statement of facts.

Kettering Police were contacted later that morning by Electronic Home Detention, who told them where Flowers was based on his ankle monitor’s location, Officer Cynthia James, public information officer for Kettering Police, told News Center 7.

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Police then went to an address on S. Smithville Road in Dayton where Flowers “eventually exited the home per officers’ commands and was taken into custody.” He was taken to the hospital for a mental evaluation.

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Flowers is scheduled to be sentenced on November 20, court documents said.

He faces up to 12 years in prison and cannot have contact with the two men who were inside the house at the time of the fire.

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