A San Diego woman was in custody Thursday, accused of setting a man on fire in Bay Terraces, San Diego Police said.
The victim, identified by police as a 56-year-old man, knew the suspect according to investigators but they have not determined a motive for the attack.
Investigators say the man had serious burns on the right side of his body on his arms and torso.
The woman, 32, told police she was in the vehicle with the man when he sexually assaulted her. She claims she set the fire in self-defense, police said.
“It appears there is a relationship between the male and the female,” said SDPD Lt. Andra Brown. “Our sex crimes unit in involved as well as the MAST unit because it was an intentional vehicle fire.”
The vehicle was parked in an apartment complex parking lot on South Meadowbrook when the incident happened at 7:30 a.m.
Police have not released information on how exactly the fire started, other than it was intentional. They say the man and woman immediately got out of the car when the fire started.
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They say it is still too early to say what the charges will be due to the complexity of the case.
The incident occurred in the Bay Terraces community just north of the junction between State Routes 54 and 125.
