TX Man Jailed for Setting Home on Fire to Punish Family for Not Following Bible

A Texas man named Philip Daniel Mills is in jail after allegedly setting his brother’s home on fire on Thursday night in order to kill him. After spreading gasoline (taken from a weed eater) all over a living room sofa, then setting it on fire, Mills apparently waited outside the house with rocks.

In case his brother or mother tried to escape, he had Plan B ready to go.

In an affidavit filed by the El Paso Police Department, the reason for this attempted murder had everything to do with Christianity.

The affidavit claims Mills caused the fire because he was upset with his brother and mother because they did not follow the Bible. The document states Mills intentionally broke a television in the living room and threatened to burn the house down.

“He intentionally broke the television located in the living room because he needed to ‘purge the home from ‘evil,” Mills allegedly told police…

The brother, Paul Aaron Mills, died in the fire. The mother escaped with burns and was taken to a local hospital where she remains in critical condition, according to WTSM.

Philip Daniel Mills didn’t take that news well:

The affidavit states officers told Mills his brother had died and his mother was injured in the fire during an interview.

“The defendant then laughed and advised the investigators that he was shocked that both his mother and brother did not perish and called it a ‘failed attempt.”

While Mills has a criminal record, there’s no evidence of mental illness. It’s also not clear why he thought his family members weren’t following the Bible. Were they atheists? Were they interpreting the Bible differently? Did they have a fight over certain verses leading up to the fire?

We have no answers. All we know is that Philip Mills isn’t putting up much of a defense… and whatever his complaints about his family’s religious beliefs, it’s not like he took the “Thou shalt not kill” rule seriously either.

(via Raw Story. Thanks to @TurnLeftStopRed for the link)