BRIGHTON, IL (KTVI-FOX2now.com) -
A 60-year-old woman shattered a holiday gathering of her boyfriend and his family near Brighton, Illinois. She ran a pickup truck into his home, then set fire to the truck and burned down the house. She apparently intended to die in the blaze by locking herself inside the truck. Sheriff Mark Kallal from Jersey County said, "She was locked in the truck, apparently, and she wouldn't open the door." Jersey County deputies say her fury was apparently aimed at Leslie Goheen, 62, a retired Alton Box Board Company employee. None of the family members would discuss why the couple was at odds or the length of their relationship.
The woman had to drive about 100 yards off State Route 111 south of Brighton to hit the home. Inside were the man's daughter, son-in-law and their two children. All escaped injury, including the woman who had to be pulled out of the truck through a broken window.
"She had lit the inside of the truck on fire and the cab was getting engulfed in flames and the family member was trying to rescue her from the truck and she was trying to avoid getting rescued," explained Sheriff Kallal.
Deputies say the so-far unidentified woman also lives in the Brighton area. The truck is owned by Robert's Ford in Alton. She recently took it out for what she claimed was a test ride before buying it.
The woman was outside the truck when deputies arrived and took her into custody. The sheriff says the woman is now undergoing a mental health evaluation before a decision is made on charges against her.
Sheriff Kallal said, "Everybody got out without any injury and that's the best part of the whole thing."
The woman had to drive about 100 yards off State Route 111 south of Brighton to hit the home. Inside were the man's daughter, son-in-law and their two children. All escaped injury, including the woman who had to be pulled out of the truck through a broken window.
"She had lit the inside of the truck on fire and the cab was getting engulfed in flames and the family member was trying to rescue her from the truck and she was trying to avoid getting rescued," explained Sheriff Kallal.
Deputies say the so-far unidentified woman also lives in the Brighton area. The truck is owned by Robert's Ford in Alton. She recently took it out for what she claimed was a test ride before buying it.
The woman was outside the truck when deputies arrived and took her into custody. The sheriff says the woman is now undergoing a mental health evaluation before a decision is made on charges against her.
Sheriff Kallal said, "Everybody got out without any injury and that's the best part of the whole thing."
