Man pleads guilty in pet shop arson

A 28-year-old man pleaded guilty Wednesday to arson and animal cruelty charges in the Prince and Princess Pet Boutique fire.

Kirk Bills’ plea to one count each of first-degree arson and attempted cruelty to animals came a little more than a week after the shop’s owner, Gloria Lee, pleaded guilty in the case.

The arson charge carries a possible sentence of two to 15 years in prison, while the cruelty charge carries up to four years behind bars.

Bills, a fledgling boxer, was arrested in Indiana several days after the Jan. 27 fire. Since then, he has been held in the Clark County Detention Center on $310,000 bail.

“It’s entirely possible that if he gets the lower end of that range, he could be home sooner than later,” his lawyer, Roger Bailey, said.

Prosecutors say Bills and Lee can be seen on surveillance video from the pet shop that shows a woman letting a man with dreadlocks into the shop. The man splashed gasoline and kerosene onto the animal cages and tried to start a fire as the woman pulled documents from the business and collected empty fuel cans before the fire was set.

The blaze was quickly extinguished by a sprinkler system in the store, and the dogs survived unharmed.

Lee and Bills were originally charged with 27 counts of attempted animal cruelty along with burglary and arson in connection with the fire.

After entering his plea, Bills apologized to his family and animal rights activists who have attended all of the court appearances for the defendants.

“This is not who I am,” Bills said. “This is not what I want to be remembered by. I apologize.”

In previous court hearings, Bailey had argued that there was insufficient evidence to place his client at the scene and that the video was too dark to identify Bills.

While Bills pleaded guilty to only one count of animal cruelty, the charge represents every dog that was inside the pet shop.

The case drew national media attention after videos of the fire and the puppies were released. Animal rights activists protested outside the courthouse, demanding harsh penalties.

“We definitely want to see the maximum four years” for the animal cruelty charge, said Gina Greisen, president of Nevada Voters For Animals.

The county took charge of the 27 dogs, which included 25 puppies, and the Animal Foundation adopted out the young dogs via the Arson Puppy Adoption Drawing, which sold $250 raffle tickets.

The two adult dogs were placed in foster care through the animal rescue A Home 4 Spot.

Contact reporter David Ferrara at dferrara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039. Find him on Twitter: @randompoker.