POLK CO., NC (WSPA) – Polk County deputies say a man accused of arson and kidnapping was captured after the victim’s dog led deputies to where he was hiding.
According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, firefighters and deputies were called to a fire along Hugh Champion Road shortly before 8:30 a.m. Monday.
The sheriff’s office said that arson investigators also responded to the home. Investigators said they believed the suspect was still in a wooded area nearby.
Deputies noticed the victim’s dog, Apollo, nearby on an old road and followed him through the woods where they found the suspect, Meko Lockee.
Lockee was taken into custody and charged with second-degree arson, first-degree kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury, assault of a female, larceny of a motor vehicle, breaking and entering, larceny, and Communicating Threats.
Lockee is being held in the Polk County Detention Center without bond.
In a Facebook post about the incident, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office dubbed Apollo an honorary K9 officer.
