A South Carolina woman is accused of pouring lighter fluid on a police officer and then attempting to set him on fire, WPDE-TV reports.
The encounter happened Saturday in Latta, a tiny town of about 1,200 people between Charlotte and Myrtle Beach.
Latta Police Chief Zane Bryant told the television station that while officers were attempting to arrest 38-year-old Melissa McCoy for alleged trespassing, she began “dousing lighter fluid all over the officer and attempted to ignite the officer with a lighter,” according to WPDE-TV, quoting Bryant.
Officers eventually detained McCoy and took her into custody.
The officer whom McCoy attacked was treated at a hospital and later released. His identity has not been disclosed, but he is reportedly doing well.
As for McCoy, she was denied bond and is being held at the Dillon County Detention Center, WBTW-TV reports. She faces charges of attempted murder, threatening the life of a public official, trespassing and resisting arrest, according to WMBF-TV.
Similar attacks have happened before. In March 2020, an Illinois man was arrested for allegedly spraying lighter fluid in the face of a police officer and trying to set the officer’s vehicle on fire, according to Fox 32.
That man, 58-year-old David E. Bruce, was later charged with battery, assault of an officer, aggravated arson, and criminal damage to property.
Bruce had started a fire inside a business in Elgin before the officer extinguished the blaze and confronted him. The officer was treated at a hospital and later released.
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[Feature Photo: Melissa McCoy/Dillon County Detention Center]
