A Wallins man was allegedly caught on the property of a burned residence Saturday and arrested after a trooper saw him coming out of a storage building with a heater.

Paul Buell, 24, was arrested and charged with third-degree burglary and being a persistent felony offender.

The property on Williams Avenue in Wallins where Buell was arrested belonged to the late Thelma Goodwin, who died a year ago. The property has since been overseen by Goodwin's daughter, Joann Kilgore, and her husband Bobby, who reside in Lexington.

The property, which has been vacant since Goodwin's death, is across the street from Buell's residence.

Goodwin's house burned on Sept. 2, and an arson investigation was opened by KSP Det. Dee Hughes. The day after Goodwin's house burned, a vehicle was stolen out of the garage on the property. The vehicle theft is under investigation by KSP trooper Marcus Williams.

The arson and vehicle theft investigations are currently ongoing. Williams said he is following up on some leads and an arrest is pending.

Kentucky State Police trooper James Earl Hensley said Post 10 received a complaint that someone was inside an outbuilding stealing items.

"Upon my arrival, I noticed the subject (Buell) packing a heater out of one of the outbuildings," Hensley said. "I asked the subject what he was doing and he advised that he was packing it home. I asked him where he got the heater and he advised that he got it out of the yard. I advised him that I saw him coming out of the out building. There were 'No Trespassing' signs posted all over the property."

According to the citation, the alleged crime was committed at 2:23 p.m. Buell was placed under arrest at 2:40 p.m.

Buell was lodged in the Harlan County Detention Center with bond set at $5,000 full cash.