Strip mall on 39th Street in arson-for-hire case burned down before, in 1990
A Kansas City commercial building that was supposed to be burned down in a failed arson-for-hire scheme burned once before along with a swath of other properties in a horrific four-alarm blaze in 1990.
Mia Lee Jamison, 67, owner of the building at 39th Street and Bell Avenue, was charged Monday in federal court on an accusation she tried to pay an undercover agent $150,000 to burn down her building for insurance money.
The property houses 39th World of Spirits, Bob Wasabi Kitchen and Sahara Sheesha Lounge on a bustling section of 39th Street, sandwiched between popular restaurants and bars.
Jamison, a Gladstone resident, attempted to pay an undercover agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives $150,000 to burn down the Mia Plaza property, federal prosecutors alleged.
The charges come 29 years after a fire burned a building Jamison owned at that spot in 1990. Her former husband, attorney Kevin L. Jamison, said the idea that she would destroy the building on purpose was unexpected.
“That building was her baby,” Kevin Jamison said. “It kind of surprised me; it was like setting fire to your child. That thing was the start of her business enterprise in America.”
Jamison moved from Korea to the United States when she and Kevin Jamison were married in 1977. Proceeds from the store helped put Kevin Jamison through law school.
Jamison bought World of Spiritis in 1981 and soon turned it into a success by catering to a clientele that included young physicians from the nearby medical center.
“We cashed checks for guys from KU Medical Center and we sold a lot of young doctors beer and wine for the weekend,” Kevin Jamison said.
On Nov. 6, 1990, the four-alarm fire swept through a two-story section that housed restaurants and bars. The fire destroyed several apartment units and at least three businesses, including World of Spirits.
Fire crews quickly evacuated nearby bar patrons and others as the fire spread. Kevin Jamison remembered a worker at the liquor store was initially reluctant to follow orders by firefighters to leave.
The employee told fire crews: “I can’t leave, my shift isn’t over,” Kevin Jamison said.
“You got to love some of these people,” he said. “And the fire department wasn’t having any of that and they got her out. God bless them. I’m glad that we didn’t have a fire this time.”
No one was hurt in the 1990 blaze but it left eight people homeless. Kevin Jamison said the fire was caused by a man in one of the buildings who was making dentures and pulled too much electricity over a set of electrical wires.
At the time, officials said the fire was caused by faulty wiring. The building was insured.
Kevin Jamison was seeking to be elected Clay County prosecutor at the time. The couple was at a Republican rally when they received word that their business on was fire. Kevin Jamison was defeated in the general election later that evening.
A laundry business Jamison also owned in the complex was not damaged.
Hundreds gathered to watch the blaze, some at a nearby bar. A three-block area was cordoned off as more than 40 firefighters attacked the flames.
This week, prosecutors allege Jamison wanted a second fire to look like an accident, telling the undercover agent she was about to lose ownership of the building, which had a $1.6 million insurance policy on it.
The agent agreed to set the fire between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. to limit the risk of hurting tenants. Jamison allegedly agreed to pay the agent $3,500 upfront and the rest after she received the insurance settlement.
Because of an ongoing civil lawsuit, Jamison told the agent Friday, she needed the building burned before Monday. She allegedly told the agent she was willing to pay more because she wanted the fire set sooner rather than later, prosecutors allege.
“I don’t know anything about her business efforts but they have collapsed in recent years,” Kevin Jamison said. “The family has agreed that her mental state has been going downhill.”
Kevin and Mia Jamison were married about 20 years and the couple divorced in 1996, Kevin Jamison said.
“She’s been (a) hell of a business woman,” he said. “But her mental state may account for her businesses were going down hill.”
Jamison did not yet have a specific public defender listed in court records who could be reached for comment.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREHow did we report this story?
On Monday, federal prosecutors in Kansas City announced charges accusing Mia Lee Jamison of trying to hire an arsonist to burn her building down. We published a story about those charges. On Tuesday, a reader reached out to us on Twitter to point out that the building had actually burned down in 1990, and The Star had published articles about it. The same day, we reviewed those articles and contacted Jamison’s ex-husband, who also remembered the fire. Do you have tips? Contact our reporters — their info is posted at the bottom of each story.
This story was originally published April 30, 2019 at 4:37 PM.
