Arson arrest for Rohnert Park homeless woman in fire near Highway 101

A recliner that authorities said had been set ablaze Saturday morning near a Highway 101 overpass in southern Santa Rosa led to the arrest of a Rohnert Park homeless woman on suspicion of arson, the CHP reported.

As firefighters put out the flaming furniture, which had been hauled into a drainage ditch off Todd Road, officers encountered 31-year-old Hollie Wilson, who was inside a nearby tent in a grassy area next to the highway, the CHP reported.

Her face was covered with soot, and officers said she smelled like butane, the CHP reported. Several items around the campsite were also burned, authorities said.

Wilson, who is on probation for arson out of Sutter County, according to the CHP, initially denied starting the fire, but admitted to setting others in the past, telling officers she was addicted to it, the CHP reported.

She later admitted she had placed the chair in the culvert and set it on fire, the CHP said. She was arrested and booked for arson and the outstanding warrants.