Investigation ongoing as Sumter woman sets home ablaze after domestic dispute

A Sumter woman has been charged with arson after reportedly setting her home on fire.

Deputies with Sumter County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a fire at a residence on Race Track Road on Saturday afternoon. Upon arrival, the home was fully engulfed in flames, according to Mark Bordeaux, public information officer for the sheriff’s office.

Patricia Anne Tilton, a resident of the home and whom officials identified as the suspect, was said to have asked victims to call 911. Victims then heard windows breaking and saw smoke coming from a room Tilton had left.

During questioning, Tilton was found in possession of a torch lighter, which she told deputies she used to start the fire during a domestic dispute, Bordeaux said.

Tilton was charged and taken to Sumter County Sheriff’s Office, where she remains.

An investigation is ongoing.