BEXAR COUNTY, Texas – A San Antonio man told investigators he was innocent before Bexar County Sheriff’s deputies took him into custody in connection with setting a house on fire last year.
According to Bexar County Adult Detention Center records, Paul Phillip Kinney, Jr., 47, was arrested Monday by the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) on the following charges:
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- arson with intent to damage a habitation (first-degree felony)
- burglary of a habitation (first-degree felony)
- criminal mischief (misdemeanor)
A Bexar County judge set his total bond at $155,000, court records show.
According to Bexar County jail records, Kinney bonded out of jail at approximately 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Fire reported at the home
A Bexar County Fire Marshal’s Office arson investigator led the investigation into the July 31, 2025, house fire.
Law enforcement and additional first responders were dispatched to the home just before 3:30 a.m. in the 12500 block of Stillwater Creek in far west Bexar County. Multiple neighbors said they heard a “pop” and later saw an “orange glow” at their neighbor’s home, the affidavit stated.
BCSO was the first agency on the scene. Deputies said they first noticed the home’s front door was open before going inside the two-story home.
When deputies went inside, investigators said they didn’t go upstairs because they saw flames coming from the second floor of the home. Upon clearing the first floor, deputies said they found a five-gallon gas can “filled to the top” and a “pry bar” on the dining room table. The gas can was removed from the home as a “precaution,” investigators said.
The back door of the home was also open, according to the affidavit.
Firefighters arrived at the home and began extinguishing the fire on the second floor — the area where crews believed the fire originated. In all, fire crews said the fire caused an “estimated $500,000 in damages,” the affidavit stated.
No one was home at the time of the fire.
‘Prior conflicts’
In the affidavit, the investigator wrote that they noticed several abnormalities at the home after the fire was extinguished:
- its CPS Energy line was cut
- the front door’s deadbolt was in the locked position despite evidence of a forced entry
- a strong odor of gasoline enveloped the stairway and up through the second floor
Neighbors also provided home surveillance video to investigators, which depicted a four-door sedan driving throughout the neighborhood around midnight — approximately three-and-a-half hours before first responders arrived at the house fire.
In one video clip, which the investigator wrote happened “shortly before the fire,” the same four-door sedan was seen driving away from the residence ”at a high rate of speed."
The homeowners shared their suspicion with investigators that Kinney and his wife intentionally set their house on fire while they were on vacation.
According to the fire marshal’s office, the suspicion stemmed from “prior conflicts,” which included a custody battle between Kinney’s wife and her ex-husband. The ex-husband and his current wife were awarded custody of the child he previously had with Kinney’s wife.
The couple also accused Kinney of slashing tires on their personal vehicle after a court hearing as well as tampering with their surveillance cameras and CPS Energy meter, according to the affidavit.
One of the homeowners’ children posted a video to social media, which showed their family on vacation during the week of July 31, 2025, in Hawaii, the fire marshal’s office reported. The homeowners believe Kinney and his wife knew the home would be vacant because Kinney’s wife may have seen the child’s video online, the affidavit stated.
As of Tuesday, there is no known arrest record or charges filed against Kinney’s wife in connection with the July 2025 fire.
Determining a suspect
According to the arson investigator, the specific brand of gas can recovered after the house fire was “sold primarily” at Walmart and a few smaller auto shops.
The investigator wrote that they visited three different Walmart locations: two near Kinney’s last known address and another near the scene of the house fire.
One of the Walmart stores — located in the 5500 block of De Zavala Road near Interstate 10 — is close to Kinney’s last known address. The bar codes on the gas cans were a “match” at the De Zavala Road location, the investigator determined.
Surveillance video from the Walmart on De Zavala Road showed a man wearing “a black hat, black latex gloves and a black face mask” while purchasing the gas cans just before 8:45 a.m. on July 27, 2025 — four days before the house fire, according to the affidavit. Officials said the video also captured the man’s tattoo, which read “Kinney,” on his right arm while he made the purchase.
The man was later seen exiting the Walmart and entering a black Chevrolet Suburban with black rims. According to the investigator, Kinney also owns a black Chevrolet Suburban with black rims.
In September 2025, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Kinney’s home and seized devices belonging to Kinney and his wife. The arson investigator also interviewed Kinney.
Denying involvement
In his interview with the arson investigator, Kinney said he didn’t have any involvement with the July 2025 house fire at his wife’s ex-husband’s home.
In fact, investigators said Kinney accused the man of stalking his wife “for several years.” According to Kinney, the stalking claims were presented to law enforcement, but no action was taken, the affidavit stated.
When asked about the two five-gallon gas cans, Kinney admitted to purchasing them to “use with his dirt bikes,” documents show. However, according to the investigator, no dirt bikes or five-gallon gas cans were found at Kinney’s home.
The investigator showed Kinney photos of a man buying the gas cans at the Walmart on De Zavala Road, which Kinney confirmed was him. When the investigator told him the cans were recovered at the home on Stillwater Creek, Kinney said he wished to speak to a lawyer, according to the affidavit.
‘Make his life hell’
During an analysis of Kinney’s cellphone, the investigator found Kinney turned his phone off nearly 90 minutes before first responders arrived at the house fire.
Several text messages mentioned in the affidavit between Kinney and his wife brought additional context to the custody battle between her and her ex-husband.
“I’m (sic) make his life hell like he did you,” Kinney wrote to his wife, referring to her ex-husband.
“Yes after the judgement (sic) lol,” Kinney’s wife wrote back.
The investigator’s review of financial records also revealed Kinney rented a 2024 Toyota Corolla LE from an Enterprise Rent-a-Car location one day before the fire.
Based on the fire marshal’s office review of surveillance video from a neighbor near the house fire, the arson investigator wrote that the rented vehicle “is consistent in appearance” with the vehicle seen speeding away from the home on July 31, 2025.
According to the affidavit, the arson investigator accused Kinney of:
- cutting off electricity to the home
- ‘forcibly’ entering the home
- spraying the interior of the home with gasoline
- lighting the house on fire
According to Bexar County court records, Kinney is awaiting indictment on the two felony charges.
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