Douglas County woman charged with arson after siphoning gas while smoking | Local | kezi.com

ROSEBURG, Ore. – A woman in a bakery van, who allegedly lit a cigarette while using a hose to siphon gas out of a U-Haul vehicle last week in Roseburg, is charged with second-degree arson after at least one and possibly two U-Haul vehicles were destroyed by fire, according to court records.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Jennifer Denise Holmes, 47, who drives a van with ‘Nana’s Sweet Treats’ written on the side, was arrested on August 3 at the Douglas County Farmers Co-Op in relation to the July 31 fire. Roseburg police were called to the U-Haul business parking lot on Northeast Stephens Street around 5:30 a.m. for a report of a fire. The U-Haul was fully engulfed, according to the report, and fire had spread to a second van. The driveline burned out, causing the flaming van to roll into a tree.

When it rolled, authorities could see a heavily burned gas cap and insulated electrical cord. Security footage showed Holmes’s van in the area just before the fire began. Holmes was questioned and admitted to siphoning gas from the U-Haul and lighting a cigarette at the same time, which sparked the fire.

Holmes is also charged with first-degree criminal mischief and reckless burning, according to court records.