Woman Intentionally Set House Fire In Lincolnshire While Her Husband Slept: Police

By Sam Borcia, Lake & McHenry County Scanner

LIBERTYVILLE, IL – Officials say a woman intentionally started a fire at her Lincolnshire home with the intention to harm her husband, who was sleeping inside the home.

Jisha M. Kurian, 34, of the 200 block of Dover Circle in Lincolnshire, was charged with aggravated arson, a Class X felony. The Lincolnshire Police Department and Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Fire Protection District responded around 1 p.m. on July 16, 2021, to a call of a house fire in the 200 block of Dover Circle.

The fire protection district and other nearby fire departments worked to extinguish the fire. One person was inside the residence at the time of the fire and they were uninjured, police said.

The cause of the fire was initially undetermined and in September 2021, fire investigators learned the fire had possibly been intentionally set. The case was turned over to the Lincolnshire Police Department and detectives conducted a thorough investigation.

Detectives obtained evidence that Kurian intentionally ignited the fire in the residence with the intent to harm the person inside, police said. Kurian was arrested after turning herself in to the Lincolnshire Police Department on Wednesday.

During a bond hearing, Lake County Judge Theodore Potkonjak questioned why prosecutors only charged Kurian with aggravated arson and not attempted murder.

Potkonjak said the allegation was that Kurian started the fire while knowing her husband was asleep in order to “take him out.”

Potkonjak ordered Kurian held in the Lake County Jail on a $1 million bond. She was released from custody after posting 10 percent of her bond.

Lake and McHenry County Scanner is a local breaking news website covering issues that matter such as shootings, stabbings, house fires, kidnappings, car accidents, and more around Lake County and McHenry County.