FARMINGTON — A Carthage man accused of setting a fire to burn his father’s pickup truck on Dec. 15 in Carthage has been formally charged in the case.

A Franklin County grand jury indicted Spencer C. Knox, 23, on Jan. 18 on two counts of Class A arson, a Class C charge of aggravated criminal mischief and a Class E charge of operating after suspension.

Knox lived with his parents at the time his father’s truck was burned.

State fire investigators and Maine State Police conducted an investigation before they went to the Knox residence on Dec. 21 to arrest Spencer Knox on a warrant charging one count of Class A arson. State fire investigator Kenneth MacMaster had gone around to the back of the house and caught Knox trying to escape out the back of the house, state fire investigator Jeremy Damren said previously.

Knox was released from Franklin County Detention Center on $50,000 real estate surety on Jan. 9.

Trooper Andrew Hardy had followed up on some information that he had received about a pickup truck being burned in Carthage after he responded to a family fight between Knox and his parents on Dec. 15, Damren wrote in his affidavit filed in a Farmington court.

Knox’s parents told investigators that Knox had taken the truck without permission.

Damren and MacMaster examined the truck, which was found parked on a dead-end dirt road or driveway 1 mile from the Knox residence.

“It was determined that the fire originated in the cab of the pickup truck and the fire was determined to be (set),” according to Damren’s affidavit. “The truck was extensively burned and should be considered a total loss.”

A conviction on a Class A charge carries up to 30 years in prison and a $50,000 fine, while a conviction on a Class C charge is punishable by a maximum five years in prison and $5,000 fine. A Class E charge carries up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.