Sophia Teacher sets fire to house with husband, son inside

By Leroy Smith

A primary school teacher is on the run after setting fire to her home with her husband Richard Walters and their 15-year-old son trapped inside. The fire was set during wee hours of Tuesday morning while the teen and his father were asleep.

News Room was told that Brusene Walters, a teacher attached to the Sophia Primary School, set fire to the bed in which her husband was sleeping.

The woman had previously set fire to some building materials which was stored under their Cummings Park, Sophia home on Monday afternoon. The materials were bought by her older son with her assistance as he intended to construct a small shack in which he and his girlfriend planned to live.

According to Richard Walters, when he awoke, he saw fire on his bed but was not aware that the woman was the one who set it. He indicated that he also smelled kerosene but still could not believe that it was the woman who set the fire. When he rushed to take her and their son to safety, it was then that he realised that the woman was the one who started the fire since she threw a lit kerosene stove at him and then fled the house.

Persons in the area rushed to their assistance but by then the woman had disappeared. She is believed to be hiding out at her sister’s home in Berbice.

The man expressed alarm that the woman would attempt to set fire to their house knowing their youngest child was inside. Asked what may have caused the woman to take such actions, Walters said she recently accused him of having an affair, however he denied.

Walters suffered burns to the body, including the groin area, for which he was treated at the Sophia Health Centre. He was then referred to the Georgetown Public Hospital for medication which was not available at the health centre at the time.

News Room understands that the birth certificates of the two children along with source documents for both the adults were also destroyed in the fire.