Murphy – A Blairsville, Ga., man was arrested on arson charges connected to 10 fires in grass, brushlands and woodlands involving several different property owners in Martins Creek.
Kevin James Roper, 48, of Blairsville, was booked on March 10 and released the same day after posting $25,000 secured bond. Roper was arrested following a months-long investigation into a series of intentionally set fires in Martins Creek, Cherokee County Sheriff Chris Wood said in a release.
The investigation began in late December 2025 after several suspicious fires were reported along Tate Road in an area straddling the state line between Cherokee County and Union County, Ga. Due to the location of the incidents and nature of the fires, the N.C. Forest Service and Georgia Forest Service initiated a joint investigation.
Additional fires were reported in February 2026 in Martins Creek. On Feb. 22, deputies with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office responded to one of the fires as part of the ongoing investigation.
On March 10, the N.C. Forest Service and Georgia Forest Service requested assistance from the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office and Murphy Police Department in taking Roper into custody. Investigators with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office made contact with Roper, who was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Cherokee County Detention Center.
“This investigation involved close coordination between multiple agencies, including the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office, Murphy Police Department, N.C. Forest Service and Georgia Forest Service,” Wood said. “Intentionally setting fires is not a prank and it’s not a minor offense.
“These crimes endanger lives, destroy property and put firefighters and innocent families at serious risk. Anyone who deliberately sets a fire in this community will be pursued aggressively and held fully accountable under the law. We will not tolerate reckless actions that threaten the safety of our citizens and our land.”
Roper is scheduled to appear in Cherokee County District Court on Tuesday, April 7. The investigation is ongoing.