Miles Andrew Caldwell, Arson, Arkansas 2023

LITTLE ROCK, AR—A 20-year-old man has been sentenced to 84 months in federal prison for intentionally setting fires at two Little Rock fitness centers, leaving children and staff members in harm’s way.

Miles Andrew Caldwell, of Little Rock, was handed down the sentence by United States District Judge James M. Moody, Jr. on [date]. Caldwell pleaded guilty to one count of arson committed at the Little Rock Athletic Club on February 4, 2025.

On November 16, 2023, Caldwell arrived at the Little Rock Athletic Club at approximately 11:00 a.m. and entered the men’s restroom on the first floor. He then exited the restroom and walked down the hallway past the operating daycare center, which was occupied by several children and staff members. Caldwell later entered the basketball court and exited, walking back to the daycare area before taking the stairs to the second floor.

Women in the tennis hallway reported the smell of smoke, causing the fire alarm to sound. Children, daycare staff, and other occupants of the tennis area exited the building through the smoke-filled hallway. The investigation revealed that the fire was set in a paper towel dispenser in the first-floor men’s restroom, as well as in the second-floor men’s restroom.

Later that same day, at approximately 3:49 p.m., the Little Rock Fire Department responded to 10 Fitness on North Rodney Parham Road, where its men’s restroom also sustained fire damage. Firefighters observed smoke present in the main gym, with thicker smoke in the area of the bathrooms. The investigation revealed that the toilet paper dispenser in the handicapped stall of the men’s restroom had been set on fire.

The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with assistance from the Little Rock Fire Department and the Little Rock Police Department. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Erin O’Leary. Caldwell was also sentenced to three years’ supervised release, with no parole in the federal system.

Caldwell was arrested on November 20, 2023, on a federal complaint and later indicted by a federal grand jury on two counts of arson. He was located at his residence, where investigators found shoes and a hooded sweatshirt consistent with what was observed on security footage.

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