Man Who Beat His Mom To Death, Set Her Atlanta Home On Fire Gets Life

ATLANTA, GA -- An Atlanta man who beat his mother to death three months after he was released from jail on bond was recently sentenced to life without parole plus 66 years behind bars, the Fulton County District Attorney's Office announced Tuesday. Keenan Jones was found guilty Sept. 25 on 11 counts in the brutal slaying.

Jones was convicted of the following crimes: malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, aggravated stalking, exploitation and intimidation of an elderly person, arson, criminal damage to property and simple battery and possession of tools for the commission of a crime. (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app.)

The conviction stems from a June 2014 incident in which Arlene Tigner arrived to her East Point home to find Jones, her son, in the living room. An argument erupted and culminated in Tigner telling Jones to leave, the DA said.

"Defendant then pushed her to the floor, went outside and started throwing 'Molotov' cocktails at the front door," the DA's Office said in a news release. Tigner ran to a nearby neighbor's home to call 911.

By the time East Point firefighters and police officers arrived, the home engulfed in flames. When authorities questioned Jones, he said, “I burnt this mother [expletive]," according to the Fulton DA. He was immediately arrested and taken to jail.

Six months later, in December 2014, Jones received a signature bond and was released from jail. Three months later, in March 2015, a plumber doing work at Tigner's home found her body on the basement floor, the DA said.

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Neighbors said that they saw Jones in and around his mother's home the day she was killed. Authorities conducted an investigation, which revealed that Jones pushed himself into his mother's home, sparking a struggle over her car keys and wallet.

"Defendant began to strike Ms. Tigner in her head, neck, and chest. After the deadly assault, Ms. Tigner had 25 fractures in her ribs and the Medical Examiner reported seeing damage to her heart and liver from the blunt force of Defendant’s strikes," the DA Office said.

Jones was arrested four days after Tignor’s body was found. At the time of his arrest, he had his mother's driver’s license, Social Security card, MasterCard, EBT Card and Marta Breeze Card, the DA said.

Image via Fulton County Sheriff’s Office