BATON ROUGE - On a Thursday (June 18) night, fire investigators say a woman who had been arguing with her husband decided to take matters into her own hands and set their home on fire.

That night, around 11 p.m., first responders with the St. George Fire Protection District (SGFD) rushed to a house fire within the 1700 block of Peck Drive, which is in a neighborhood off Siegen Lane/Perkins Road.

In their official report, firefighter say, "the first engine crews found a garage fully involved and the connected house showing heavy flames coming from the attic."

After quickly getting the blaze under control, SGFD fire investigators were called to conduct an investigation into what caused the fire.

During their analysis of the case, investigators discovered that the house was rented by Barbarann Locke and her husband, a couple who were in the midst of a weighty argument. Investigators say the couple had on-going domestic problems prior to the fire.

Evidence also revealed that the fire was started in the husband's truck.

But investigators determined that Locke's husband couldn't have started the fire because he wasn't home during the incident.

After interviewing the couple and reviewing video footage from neighbors, investigators came to a conclusion: "the fire was caused by the direct and intentional acts of Barbarann Locke."

Officials say they obtained an arrest warrant for Locke on July 22, but she fled to Florida the following day.

She was unable to remain in hiding when the United States Marshal's Office assisted investigators in locating and apprehending her.

Locke was booked into the Putnam Count, Florida jail by the U.S Marshals on July 30, 2020.

On Thursday, August 13, the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office brought Locke back to Baton Rouge where she was booked into the parish prison as a fugitive.

Her charges include two counts of Simple Arson.