A 46-year-old Independence man has admitted he was hired to burn down a store by a man trying to settle a grievance with a former employee.

Randall Eugene Yeager Jr., pleaded guilty Thursday to participating in an arson conspiracy.

Yeager said he was hired on two occasions to damage Bobby Jackson’s Trading, a gold-buying business in Independence. He drove a stolen Jeep into the business in July 2017, causing $10,000 in damage. And he set fire to the store in August 2017, causing about $5,000 in damage.

The Kansas City Star reports William Josephn Reneau, owner of Gold Rush Exchange, is charged with hiring Yeager. Prosecutors say Reneau was trying to settle a grievance with the owner of Bobby Jackson’s, who previously worked for Reneau. That case is pending.

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