KINGWOOD, W.Va. — A couple is charged with burning their house in Fairmont and collecting the insurance money.
Brittany Marie Drake Metheny, 26, and Christopher Carlton Metheny, 35, now living at Kingwood, are charged by State Fire Marshals with making a fraudulent insurance claim, burning insured property and first-degree arson.
They were arraigned Tuesday in Preston Magistrate Court. Bond was set at $75,000 each.
According to criminal complaints:
The two had moved out of a house at 114 May St., and it was empty. They had been unemployed for some time. A neighbor’s home security camera showed Christopher Metheny walking through the door Dec. 12. Brittany Metheny told officers she dropped him off at the house and about 2 minutes later he got back into the car.
Less than 4 minutes later, the security camera showed flames in the home’s living room. About a minute later, heavy smoke is seen coming from the eaves directly above the front door and second floor. Within 38 minutes smoke fills the street and the fire department arrives.
Witnesses told marshals that Mr. Metheny admitted to setting the fire. The home was valued at about $110,000, and the bank had a $103,000 mortgage on it. It was insured for about $257,000 on the structure and $150,000 on the contents.
Witnesses also said they were present when the couple discussed including TVs, jewelry, a rifle and other items as lost in the fire, when they were not — the jewelry had been pawned, and the TVs and rifle sold. They split the more than $150,000 settlement, as they were going through a divorce.
Story by Kathy Plum