NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A woman has been indicted for murder after she allegedly flew into a “jealous rage” and set a detached garage containing her boyfriend and another woman on fire earlier this month, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Wednesday.
Aliya Fakhri, 43, is charged with first-degree murder, four counts of second-degree murder and two counts of arson for allegedly setting the fire that claimed the lives of Edward Jacobs, 35, and Anastasia Ettienne, 33.
At around 6:20 a.m. on Nov. 2, Fakhri went to the front door of the detached garage behind 172-27 91st Ave. and yelled up to Jacobs, who was inside, “You’re all going to die today,” according to the charges and investigation.
Prosecutors said that soon after, a witness who was inside the property came downstairs to find the garage on fire.
Ettienne was alerted to the fire, went downstairs but returned to try and save Jacobs, who was sleeping. Since Fakhri is accused of lighting the fire at the front of the building, as it became engulfed in flames, the victims had no exit and were unable to escape.
Both Ettienne and Jacobs later died of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries, officials said.
FDNY Battalion Chief Jack Flatley said on Nov. 2 that the garage housing the victims was filled with heavy clutter, including couches and pigeon coops, and it was “not really meant for habitation.” Neighbors told authorities that there were people living in the detached garage, and he described Ettienne and Jacobs as “squatters.”
One of their bodies was found on the first floor, and the other on the second, Flatley said at the time.
“As alleged in this indictment, this defendant maliciously ended the lives of two people by setting a fire that trapped a man and woman in a raging inferno,” Katz said. “The victims tragically died from smoke inhalation and thermal injuries. Our condolences are with [the] families of Edward Jacobs and Anastasia Ettienne as we prosecute this case.”
Fakhri was arraigned and remanded on Wednesday. If convicted of the top charge, she faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, and she is expected back in court on Dec. 9.