A Tower City, N.D., man convicted of setting his ex-wife's house on fire in 2002 faces new charges after using a Bobcat skid-steer loader to remove the deck off her house.
Prosecutors charged Douglas Allen Boppre, 903 Ordway Street, with a Class C felony charge of stalking and misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct for the May 5 incident at 904 Ordway St.
Boppre's ex-wife told authorities the two had a disagreement about who would have custody of the couple's three children for the upcoming weekend and Boppre, 40, "threw a fit and ripped her deck off her house," according to Cass County District Court documents.
Court documents state:
Boppre admitted to a sheriff's deputy that he had removed the deck. He explained it was his understanding that because he built the deck and paid for the materials for it, he owned it.
ADVERTISEMENT
In 2003, a judge sentenced Boppre to one year in prison after he pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the October 2002 fire he set at his ex-wife's home.
Investigators found a gas can and ruled an accelerant was used to start the fire, which destroyed most of the main floor.
Boppre declined to comment when reached by telephone Tuesday afternoon.
He has posted $500 bail, 10 percent of the $5,000 set Tuesday morning, and is slated to appear again Nov. 1.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Brittany Lawonn at (701) 241-5541
