EPSO arrests Dupre House fire suspect

A warrant was issued for the arrest of Patraveyanna George on April 25, 2016 after she became a suspect in the recent burning of the Dupre House, located on Main Street in Ville Platte.
George, 19, became a suspect in the April 21st fire after Deputy State Fire Marshal Roman Ray gathered information from a witness.
According to an affidavit prepared by Ray, during an interview with eye witness Marshayla Jack on April 25th, the deputy was able to acquire information that put George at the scene of the crime when the fire started.
The affidavit read, “She (Jack) and suspect (George) were in the abandoned house without permission.”
According to the public record, Ray learned from Jack that George had been sleeping in the abandoned house because she had been kicked out of her home a few weeks prior to the incident.
In Jack’s interview with the deputy fire marshal, the 18-year old revealed that she and George were “sitting on the couch in the living room when Patraveyanna (George) started smoking Marijuana.”
Jack then went on to describe to Ray how the fire began, which from intensity and burn patterns it was determined to have started in the Southeast corner of the living room located on the Southeast area of the 77-year old house.
In the affidavit, it states that Jack said, “Patraveyanna (George) then lit a candle and was holding it when the wax landed on her hand, and she dropped the candle, and it rolled under the couch.”
Jack told Ray that after dropping the candle, George began laughing and then said they should leave.
According to the affidavit, neither of the two females called emergency personnel in reference to the fire.
During her interview, Jack voluntarily revealed incriminating text messages that George had sent her after the fire.
One text message read, “Please don’t tell nobody I did that I could get into a lot of trouble,” while another read, “Please I don’t want to go to jail or you or ruin our friendship I’m scared I should of never lied to you but I needed a place to stay. I didn’t mean to burn the house it was just a joke.”
Jack also showed Ray a text message from George asking her to “please delete these text messages.”
After a stint in the hospital, for reasons unknown, George was arrested on April 29, 2016 by the Evangeline Parish Sheriff’s Office and charged with unauthorized entry of an inhabited dwelling and simple arson.
George’s bond was set by 13th Judicial District Judge Gary Ortego at $90,000.00, and she is set to appear in Judge Ortego’s courtroom for arraignment on June 2, 2016.