Tiffanie Vazquez (Photo courtesy of Baxter County Sheriff’s Office)
The case of a woman charged with arson and four counts of criminal attempt to commit first degree murder has been dismissed by the state.
An announcement regarding the action was made during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court Monday.
Prosecutor David Ethredge said initial information gathered in the case pointed to the fire being deliberately set.
He said that view began to change when one of the firemen said when he arrived on scene, he had seen flames “rolling out of an electrical box.”
Ethredge said prosecutors did not have that information when it was initially decided to bring charges.
Ethredge said currently available evidence “will not support the charges” since it now appears the fire may have started in the electrical box.
The woman was initially accused of paying $500 to have the house in the Gamaliel area burned because she said a male living there had allegedly stolen money from her, as well as being in debt to others she knew.
The 39-year-old female, who was booked into the Baxter County Detention Center under the name Tiffanie Leola Vazquez, has also been listed on jail and court records as Tiffany or Tiffanie Cortez-Lynn-Vazquez and with the last name also spelled as Vasquez.
Around midnight on January 30, 2023, a fire broke out in the residence located 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 30s, 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 area.
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. There was no insurance on the house and one of the vehicles.
The homeowner said she had put a mobile home on the property, and the company that wrote the policy on her home told her the trailer was located too near powerlines and would have to be moved.
The woman said she could not afford to move the trailer, and the insurance company canceled the coverage on her home. It was reported to have been uninsured at the time of the fire.
Restitution in the now dropped case was set at $112,400.
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 was information provided to investigators that tied Vazquez to the fire, according to the probable cause affidavit. Ethredge said there were credibility problems with the information.
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 items into the Baxter County Detention Center.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI