A woman doused a Californian man with gasoline before setting him on fire at a park in Sanger, close to Fresno.
Along with an alleged accomplice, Leonard Hawkins, 43, who is suspected of giving her the gas, Patricia Castillo, 48, is charged with setting the man fire.
Castillo and Hawkins have both been taken into custody in relation to the incident, which happened on Thursday night at about 9 o’clock.
After being summoned to the park, Sanger Police Department officers discovered the man there, who had suffered major burns to the upper half of his body.
Patricia Castillo, 48, and Leonard Hawkins, 43, both of Sanger, California, have been booked into Fresno County Jail for attempted murder, arson, and conspiracy after Castillo allegedly poured gasoline on a man and lit him on fire. Hawkins allegedly supplied the accelerant
Castillo is accused of approaching the man who was seated on the grass in the security footage and throwing a cup of gasoline on him.
The two are then shown bickering, during which the lady is seen pulling out her cigarette lighter, lighting it, and starting to move towards the male who had gone away.
A short while later, the lady touched the man’s shirt with the lighter, and it immediately caught fire.
‘Investigators used video surveillance and witness statements to identify Patricia Castillo and Leonard Hawkins as the suspects,’ the Sanger Police Department said in a statement released on social media.
‘The video shows Castillo approaching the victim and throwing a liquid from a cup onto him, and she and the victim appear to argue before Castillo sparks a lighter and lights the victim on fire. Further investigation revealed that Leonard Hawkins had provided the accelerant used to light the victim on fire to Castillo.’
The man was injured but is expected to make a full recovery after being transported to the hospital right afterwards.
Castillo and Hawkins were both arrested without a hitch and are now being held on a number of criminal counts, including attempted murder, arson, and conspiracy.