POLICE NEWS: Murder suspect allegedly set fire amid fight with ex

Oct. 25—An Elkhart woman allegedly started a fire that killed two people, including a child, as she fought with her ex-boyfriend earlier this year.

Genessa Jones, 48, is charged with two counts of murder. Details on why she is the suspect in the deaths were made public Monday when a seal was lifted on her case in Elkhart County Circuit Court.

Jones is accused of setting a fire that damaged a house in the 1800 block of Oakland Avenue early in the morning of Sunday, May 23. As firefighters responded, they rescued a woman from the roof, and found the woman's son and a man from inside. Another man had also jumped from the roof.

The man who was in the house, Dennis Witte, and the child were first taken to a local hospital for emergency treatment. They were then transferred to a hospital in Chicago, but died from their injuries, according to details in the probable cause affidavit in the case.

The rescued woman told investigators she, her son, and Witte had spent the night at the other man's house that Saturday night, about a day or so after the man had broken up with Jones. The woman had described the man as her ex-boyfriend as well, with them having broken up before he started a relationship with Jones, according to the affidavit.

The woman had also told investigators Jones had once threatened to fight her and set her on fire. Investigators also interviewed the man, who described how he and Jones had fought on May 21, with windows broken on his house and her car. He also alleged that during that fight, Jones had poured something on his house and tried to light it while threatening to "burn" it "down," the affidavit shows.

The morning of the fire, a witness said Jones was seen outside in the rear of the house about a half hour before the blaze was reported. Jones had also allegedly texted Witte about four hours before the fire with an apparent warning, according to texts quoted in the affidavit.

Fire investigators found empty kerosene and gasoline containers outside the house, and a K-9 dog trained in fire investigations had detected the presence of accelerants on sides of the house. The Elkhart Fire Department had listed the cause of the fire as undetermined since the ignition source wasn't found, as well as other factors that had interfered with the investigation, the affidavit shows.

Jones appeared in court for an initial hearing in the case on Thursday, and her trial was scheduled to begin March 21, 2022.

CRASH

Three children and a Goshen woman were injured in a two-vehicle crash near Millersburg on Friday.

An SUV driven by Alexis Ratcliff collided with a truck driven by Daron Yoder, Middlebury, after Elkhart County police said Ratcliff drove into Yoder's path at C.R. 146 and Ind. 13 around 3:15 p.m. The crash caused Ratcliff's SUV to strike a fence near the intersection, a news release shows.

Ratcliff and three children in her SUV — aged 5 months, 4 and 2 — were injured in the crash, the release shows. She and two children were airlifted to an area hospital to receive medical treatment. A third child was taken to a hospital by ambulance, police said.

Ratcliff was also cited by police for failing to yield the right of way, the release shows.

Yoder did not report any injuries.

MAN ARRESTED ON SECOND OWI

An Elkhart man was jailed on another drinking and driving charge for the second time in three days over the weekend.

James Bond, 37, 1525 Stevens Ave., Elkhart, was arrested by Elkhart County police on charges of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and driving without a license following a traffic stop on C.R. 17 near C.R. 32 around 11:50 p.m. Saturday.

This arrest came after Bond had been arrested by Goshen police, also on an OWI charge, following a traffic stop at U.S. 33 and Sunnyside Avenue on Thursday. He had apparently bonded out of jail prior to Saturday's incident.

ARRESTS

—Teresa Castillo, 46, Goshen, was arrested by Goshen police and jailed on charges of domestic battery and interfering with the reporting of a crime after police responded to a situation in the 100 block of West Wilden Avenue around 8:35 p.m. Sunday.

—Jose Murrieta-Barrios, 47, 16203 Tropicana Ave., Goshen, was arrested by Elkhart County police and jailed on charges of driving with a suspended license, driving without a license and driving without insurance

—Osbaldo Hurtado-Vargas, 38, 58943 Sunrise Lane, Elkhart, was arrested by Elkhart County police and jailed on a charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated following a traffic stop at U.S. 33 and Concord Mall Drive around 1:40 a.m. Sunday.

—William Anderson, 43, 628 W. Carlton Ave., Elkhart, was arrested by Elkhart County police and jailed on a charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated after police responded to a crash at U.S. 33 and C.R. 13 around 5:55 p.m. Saturday.

NEGLECT OF A DEPENDENT

Elkhart County police reported a suspect was allegedly neglecting a dependent during a traffic stop at Ind. 15 and C.R. 18 around 10:45 p.m. Friday. The report doesn't provide any names or indicate whether any enforcement actions were taken.

HIT-AND-RUN

Jasmin Lopez, Goshen, reported to Goshen police a vehicle struck her vehicle while it was parked on the street at her home, 1305 S. 12th St., sometime between Saturday night and early Sunday morning.

THEFTS

—Staff at Walmart reported to Goshen police a case of possible theft at the store, 2304 Lincolnway East, around 3:35 p.m. Sunday.

—Delbert Raeder, Goshen, reported to Elkhart County police a handgun was stolen from his home, 63658 C.R. 19, sometime between April 7 and Thursday.

CONVERSION

Richard Klase reported to Elkhart County police a person took his minivan sometime between mid-September and Saturday and refused to return to it to 12648 York Hills Drive near Middlebury. The vehicle was later located in Sturgis, Michigan, police said in a report.

CRIMINAL MISCHIEF

Goshen police responded to a call about tires that were slashed on a vehicle parked at a home, 1310 Cedarbrook Court, around 9:45 a.m. Sunday.