Woman Suspected Of Igniting 11 Fires In Cave Junction: Police

CAVE JUNCTION, OR — A Grants Pass woman was arrested last Friday after police say she started more than 10 fires using road flares near an elementary school in Cave Junction.

Evelyn Maxine Barrera, 25, was taken to Josephine County Jail. According to the county jail system, Barrera faces 27 separate charges, which include arson, criminal mischief, burglary, and reckless burning.

According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by Patch, Barrera was identified by witnesses as the sole suspect in the fires.

Police in Cave Junction were reportedly first called by Illinois Valley Fire Marshal Kamron Ismaili just before 10:45 p.m. May 10. Ismaili told officers that Barrera was still on the loose after allegedly lighting at least seven fires near Evergreen Elementary School, located at 520 W. River St.

Police and fire officials ultimately found 11 total fires by the following morning, and they learned several residents in the area captured the incident on surveillance cameras.

In the videos reportedly reviewed by investigators, Barrera was seen walking around the school with lit road flares in each hand, indiscriminately lighting the fires as she walked.

Investigators believe Barrera took the road flares from a box inside the Josephine County Sheriff's Office substation in Cave Junction, which she'd allegedly broken into earlier Friday night.

Officers reported finding a brick near the substation that appeared to have been used to smash locks, doors and door latches. Additionally, computer equipment inside the station had reportedly been thrown to the ground and damaged.

Near the substation, officers found a road flare with blood on it and an empty lockbox that had been inside the station, which previously contained keys.

Surveillance from the substation reportedly showed Barrera at the scene.

The following night, May 11, an Oregon State Police trooper reportedly found Barrera on Highway 199, near Milepost 27, and arrested her. In Barrera's possession at the time of her arrest were the keys that had been in the lockbox, police said.

Barrera has no additional criminal history in Oregon, though court documents show she has some unspecified criminal history in California.

Investigators report Barrera as homeless and unemployed. Her next court appearance is scheduled for May 21 in Josephine County.

Barrera is accused of lighting the following fires:

• Three fires in a corner lot on North Boundary Avenue and Lister Street;
• Three fires at a property located at 130 N. Boundary Ave.;
• One fire at 507 W. River St.;
• Two fires at Evergreen Elementary School, one of which spread to the residence at 430 W. River St.;
• One fire near the bus barn by the school; and
• One fire in a field behind the school, along Ollis Road.

Image via Josephine County Sheriff's Office