Man set fire at former boss’s house then raided South Hill Mall. Monday he was sentenced

A 24-year-old man has been sentenced to prison in Pierce County Superior Court for setting a fire inside the home of his former boss then shooting his way through South Hill Mall with a stolen handgun in a burglary spree.

Jordan Poisson was sentenced Monday to two years, four months in prison by Superior Court Judge Angelica Williams. Poisson already has served about one year, six months in Pierce County Jail and will now have to spend about 60 days in custody with the Department of Corrections. Once his sentence is served, Poisson will face three years of community custody.

The sentence comes after the defendant pleaded guilty last month in two separate Superior Court cases brought against him for the arson and South Hill Mall burglaries, taking a deal to plea guilty to second-degree arson and first-degree burglary in one case and first-degree burglary and second-degree malicious mischief in the other.

According to court documents, the burglaries at South Hill Mall on July 23, 2019 caused about $10,000 in damages, and prosecutors accused Poisson of stealing about $5,000 in merchandise. Surveillance video showed a man dropping into the mall from the ceiling before the mall opened and shooting his way into stores through glass doors and windows. No one was injured.

His prison term was agreed upon by the prosecution and defense as part of the plea deal. It is a departure downward from the standard sentencing range for defendants in similar cases, which is between three years, five months and four years, six months in prison. His time in community custody will be double the standard length.

Adam Faber, Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office spokesperson, told The News Tribune last month the defendant’s sentencing recommendation was deemed appropriate based on Poisson’s need for mental health treatment and monitoring. In charging documents for the arson case, prosecutors noted multiple prior run-ins with police where the defendant was armed and making threats to hurt himself.

Poisson was arrested the morning of the burglaries outside the mall. A Puyallup Police Department officer saw him running to a car in the parking lot with a large amount of clothing in tow, according to the declaration for determination of probable cause.

A week after his arrest, prosecutors tied him to an arson at a home in Milton that occurred between July 22 and 24.

According to charging documents, Poisson worked for a man on residential construction sites and got into an argument with him at a job site several weeks earlier. Poisson’s boss became concerned about his employee’s behavior and took a vacation to California, telling Poisson there wouldn’t be any more work for him.

When the boss returned home July 24, he found signs of a break-in and evidence that someone tried to light his house on fire. A sprinkler system had apparently come on, dousing any flames. According to the probable cause document, several items were stolen from the house, including a Norinco 9 mm pistol, jewelry, a laptop, checkbook and other firearms. The boss noted that his 9 mm gun had a safety that had fallen off.

Puyallup police recovered a matching Norinco 9 mm pistol from Poisson when he was arrested outside the mall, missing safety and all.