A 59-year-old Wisconsin woman has been arrested and charged with setting fire to her ex-boyfriend's barn in Sturgeon Bay. Donna Jo Franklin faces one count of arson of a building without the owner's consent, with an enhanced penalty due to the victim's age.
The incident took place on June 10 on North 8th Avenue. Police and firefighters responded just before 9 p.m. after the barn was found engulfed in flames. Investigators determined the fire was suspicious, though the structure contained no animals and no one was present.
Franklin was arrested on June 15. According to a criminal complaint, she initially denied involvement and offered conflicting accounts of her whereabouts. She later confessed to using a red flicker to ignite insulation paper on the north side of the barn before discarding the device at a Culver's restaurant.
The barn owner had recently ended the relationship after Franklin discovered text messages to another woman. She told investigators that she set the fire because she did not want him to share the property with someone else.