Police: Pa. woman tied man to bed then set him on fire

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Sunday, May 24, 2015
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MECHANICSBURG, Pa. -- A woman accused of having tied a man to a bed, doused him with a flammable substance and set him on fire before fleeing in his van was later arrested in a neighboring county, authorities said.

Christina Leach, 27, is charged in Cumberland County with aggravated assault, arson and theft, according to police and court documents.

Police in Silver Spring Township said the man, whose name wasn't released, told them that a woman offered to give him a massage in his home Saturday.

"She tied him to the bed and poured a flammable substance on his upper torso and lit him on fire," Sgt. Leroy Hippensteel told reporters at a news conference Saturday evening.

Investigators said he managed to free himself and jump out of a second-story window, then drove to a convenience store to call for help. He was flown to Lehigh Valley burn center, where his condition wasn't immediately available, Hippensteel said.

Fire crews quickly put out the blaze in the home, officials said.

Sgt. Gabriel Olivera of the Harrisburg police department said Leach was arrested in Harrisburg in Dauphin County on Saturday night in a white work van reported stolen from the Cumberland County home.

Hippensteel told PennLive.com in an email that Leach also faces charges in Dauphin County and is being held at the Dauphin County Prison.

Court documents didn't indicate she had a lawyer, who could comment on the charges; a listed number for Leach couldn't be found Sunday.

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