A Preston County woman is facing second-degree arson charges after allegedly admitting to setting a fire inside the storage area of The End Zone Par Mar Convenience Store, at 34001 Veterans Memorial Highway, in Terra Alta in early December.
The Terra Alta Volunteer Fire Department responded to the call on Dec. 9 and found smoke coming from the garage/overstock storage area of the building, the criminal complaint said.
Inside, firefighters found a large wooden bin used to store recycled cardboard on fire in the middle of the garage.
After extinguishing the fire, Deputy Chief J.C. Cramer stated he was unable to find an accidental cause for the fire and believed it to be suspicious.
Assistant State Fire Marshal (ASFM) Ronald “Mackey” Ayersman was called in, along with ASFM James Owens and ASFM Rick Sovastion to conduct an origin-and-cause examination on the scene.
According to Ayersman’s report, they determined the fire was “incendiary in nature.”
The investigators noted they believed there was an initial attempted arson at a refrigerator just before the cardboard was set on fire.
Ayersman stated it was determined that there were “no accidental causes for either fire.”
A review of the store’s security footage shows Rachel Lin Giffen, 23, of Terra Alta going in and out of the garage/storage area just before the fire was discovered — no one else is seen entering the garage prior to the discovery, except Giffen, the complaint states.
During a recorded interview with Giffen, she allegedly admitted that she had taken a lighter and set fire to a brown paper towel, then placed it down beside the refrigerator in the garage.
She also allegedly admitted to intentionally setting fire to the cardboard inside the large wooden bin.
Ayersman noted that the bin had been moved from its original location and placed directly under the garage door opener. He stated he believes that it was an attempt to make the fire look accidental.
Giffen is being charged with second-degree arson and was arraigned in Preston County Magistrate Court on Wednesday.
If convicted, she could face one-to-10 years in prison.
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