A woman accused of paying to have a house burned in the Gamaliel area because a male living there had allegedly stolen money from her as well as being in debt to others she knew appeared in Baxter County Circuit Court Monday.
The 38-year-old woman, who was booked into the Baxter County Detention Center under the name Tiffanie Leola Vazquez, has also been listed as Tiffanie Cortez-Lynn in other criminal cases.
A new bond of $10,000 was set during Monday’s session.
Vazquez is charged with four counts of attempted murder in the first degree, arson and as being a habitual offender.
Around midnight on January 30 last year, a fire broke out in a residence along Highway 101 North. There were four family members living in the house.
They were identified as a 64-year-old disabled woman, her two sons, both in their 30’s, and her 15-year-old grandson.
According to the Baxter County Sheriff’s office, the fire, which was initially listed as suspicious, was reported to have started around a porch and carport.
All the residents escaped the fire, but the structure was a total loss along with two vehicles. Another vehicle was reported to have been damaged.
Damage was estimated at $110,000.
The family members were reported to have gotten out through the front door after running through flames. The males assisted the disabled woman out of the structure.
There is no explanation in the probable cause affidavit as to whether Vazquez knew that the lives of other people would be endangered by the fire.
About a year after the fire, a man claiming to have been an acquaintance of Vazquez since childhood, said he met her at a grocery store in Gamaliel and they talked about the fire.
During a conversation, the man said he told Vazquez that he was in the area working on the burned-out home. Vazquez allegedly told him she had paid a person $500 to set the fire. He asked her why she was giving him the information and she is reported to have replied it was no problem because the investigation had been closed.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Vazquez and the man both went to the residence of another male, who is reported to have been a relative of the family living in the house at the time of the fire.
During the visit, Vazquez is alleged to have repeated the claims about paying someone to torch the house because of the debt problem she had with one of the residents.
She also added details including that she was in Little Rock with her husband the night of the 2023 fire and that she had gotten a call telling her that her “problem” had been taken care of.
One of the men is reported to have recorded a video of Vazquez making these statements.
Information was taken to the Prosecuting Attorney, reviewed and charges were filed.
Vazquez has had criminal cases filed against her in the past. She was on probation at the time of the fire. She was put on probation for 10 years in April 2022 after pleading guilty to bringing contraband into the Baxter County Detention Center.
A petition to revoke her probation has been filed based on her new charges.
Several agencies assisted the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office in putting the case together, including a special response team from Arkansas Community Corrections, the 14th Judicial District Drug Task Force, Arkansas State Police and the U.S. Marshal’s Service.
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