Kentucky Dad Accused of Intentionally Setting House Fire with Two Teen Sons Inside: 'I Miss My Boys'

News By TooFab Staff |
GoFundMe/Franklin County Regional Jail

Police say the man used accelerants to set fire to his home, despite "knowing" it was "occupied" by his two sons, who are both dead.

The Kentucky father accused of intentionally setting his house on fire before the dead bodies of his two sons were found inside has pleaded not guilty to arson.

Dustin Fields, 43, was arrested last week and charged with first-degree arson after a fire at his Franklin County home on April 30. When first responders arrived at the scene, they found 13-year-old Bently Fields and 15-year-old Rylan Fields, the man's sons, dead, alongside a family dog.

During a hearing on Monday, Fields entered a not guilty plea and asked to be released temporarily to attend his sons' funeral. Instead, the judge kept his bond set at $2 million.

"I miss my boys," he reportedly told the court. When asked about owning property during the hearing, he also allegedly said, "I do but it just recently went up in a ball of flames, so there's nothing but grass and a garage at the moment."

According to an arrest report, Fields was taken in and charged after investigators utilizing a K-9 from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms detected accelerants on his shoes and around the house -- including where the teens' bodies were discovered.

The report accused Fields of using "accelerants to set fire to his residence knowing that the home was occupied by his two juvenile sons."

Chief Dwayne Depp of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office told PEOPLE that Fields wasn't at the scene when first responders arrived, but showed up moments later. He allegedly gave "conflicting information" to investigators -- with the Sheriff saying additional charges could come amid an ongoing investigation.

According to a GoFundMe set up by a friend of Fields' wife -- who is not the mother of the two victims -- she had recently filed for an emergency protective order against Dustin for her, her son and her step-sons. The friend claims the hearing was set for today's date, May 7.

Another GoFundMe set up by the victims' sister, shared more details about the boys.

"Bently was the youngest, only 13. He was supposed to graduate middle school in just a few weeks. He loved to fish and even made YouTube videos about it," he wrote. "Rylan was more tech-savvy than anything really. He even had his own stocks and fixed phones and computers everywhere; he was only 15."

She added that a memorial will be held today at Bently's middle school, before a viewing and funeral on Friday.

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