Harrison Man Charged with Setting Mother on Fire

A Harrison man is charged with a Class Y felony count 1st degree domestic battery after lighting his mother on fire.

According to the probable cause affidavit, the Harrison Police Department was dispatched to a residence for a report of a female who had been set on fire.

Upon arrival, officers spoke with the victim who stated her son, 28-year-old Albert Lea, covered her in rubbing alcohol and set her on fire. Officers observed the victim with severe burns from her sternum area up to her face. She stated Lea was not wearing any clothing and had ran away from the residence.

While waiting for EMS to arrive, the victim stated she was woken up by Lea choking her, stating she had taken his kids away from him. She was transported to Mercy Hospital in Springfield by Air Evac for treatment.

Law enforcement was able to locate a shirtless male subject on foot at the intersection of West Bower Avenue and North Pine Street, running away from the area of the incident. Officers identified the male as Lea and he was detained without incident.

Lea told authorities he woke up naked in his mother’s bed unaware of how he arrived there. He stated she was “doing some chanting” and squirting him with what he believed was rubbing alcohol. He said he “grabbed the bottle and squirted it back at her” and then “wrestled with her on the bed.” Lea states his mother had a lighter in her hand and attempted to light him on fire. He told officers he caught on fire a little bit and when his mother caught on fire, he tried to put her out by turning on the water in the bathtub and grabbing a towel.

During the interview with Lea, officers could smell an odor of smoke and burnt hair emitting from his person and observed hair missing from Lea’s left forearm.

Investigators later received a phone call from a witness who stated the victim called him in a panic asking for help. She stated Lea had set her on fire, had her phone and asked for him to call 911. The witness stated he told her to roll on the ground, and when it wasn’t working, he told her to get into the tub.

Lea is currently being held in the Boone County Detention Center on $75,000 bond.