Suspect charged with setting mother on fire

Attempted murder and torture charges were filed Tuesday against a 36-year-old Utah man accused of setting his mother on fire behind an Indio business.

Israel Guardado Ramirez of Salt Lake City, is accused of setting his mother aflame around 6 a.m. Friday, according to Indio police Sgt. Daniel Marshall. Passersby found the woman on fire at the loading dock of the Mathis Brothers furniture store at 81410 Highway 111, and helped put out the flames, he said.

The victim was airlifted to Arrowhead Regional Medical Center’s burn center in Colton, where she remains in critical condition, Marshall said.

She told Indio police that following an argument involving a child custody issue, her son used “some type of accelerant” to set her on fire, according to the sergeant. The suspect then walked into the Riverside County jail in Indio and turned himself in, Marshall said.

He remains in custody in lieu of $1 million bail and is slated to make his initial court appearance this afternoon.