Bowie Inmate Accused Of Setting Cell On Fire Over Sack Lunch

TEXARKANA, Texas–A Bowie County jail inmate allegedly used a razor, an electrical outlet and pieces of tissue to start a fire in his cell earlier this month because he was upset over not receiving a sack lunch.

Jordan Demond Wilkerson, 30, faces two to 20 years in prison if found guilty of arson in connection with the fire he allegedly started Aug. 5 in his cell at the Bowie County jail in downtown Texarkana. Wilkerson allegedly admitted that he was angry because he had not been given a “johnny sack,” a slang term used in Texas for sack lunches in jail, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Wilkerson allegedly broke apart a disposable razor and inserted the blade and some tissue into an electrical outlet, setting the paper on fire, the affidavit said. The fire created enough smoke that it activated the alarm system throughout the facility known as the Bowie County jail annex.

“By intentionally igniting combustible materials within the housing unit, Wilkerson recklessly created a substantial risk of injury or death to inmates and jail staff and endangered the property of the Bowie County Correctional Facility,” the affidavit said.

Wilkerson has been held in the jail since May when he was arrested for allegedly assaulting a woman and smashing her car with a baseball bat, according to court records.

Wilkerson and several other inmates were charged with escape in June after using fabric from blankets to defeat the locks on cell doors and enter a secure hallway in the facility. Wilkerson and the other inmates never made it beyond the confines of the jail, the Bowie County Sheriff’s Office previously said.

Jail records show that Wilkerson’s bails currently total $3.3 million.

In addition to arson and escape, Wilkerson is facing charges of aggravated assault and unlawful restraint.

Wilkerson is represented by the Bowie County Public Defender’s Office. The case has been assigned to 202nd District Judge John Tidwell.