Trial for Tacoma serial arsonist begins Monday

A woman accused of setting fire to over 15 different homes in the Tacoma area from December 2021 to January 2022 will soon appear in court.

Sarah Jane Ramey is charged with over 17 counts of first-degree arson in connection to various fires in Pierce County, many of which were right next to each other.

On December 30, 2021, the Tacoma Fire Department responded to three different fires, all occurring within blocks of each other in a 2.5 hour period.

The fires were all at homes in Central Tacoma. One of the victims reported seeing a single set of women's footprints that led from a fence line to her breaker box.

Surveillance video also showed a red-headed woman in a newer red pickup truck pulling up behind one of the houses, entering the victim's backyard, and leaving a couple of minutes later, according to court documents.

The next day, fire crews responded to a home in the North End neighborhood, where a man was found dead inside. The Medical Examiner's Office says he died of smoke inhalation, and his manner of death was later determined to be homicide.

When Ramey was later arrested, she had three cards in her possession that belonged to the late wife of the man who died in the fire, according to police. It's believed Ramey also fraudulently cashed multiple checks belonging to the homeowner.

Weeks later, on January 23, 2022, a family of five escaped a home that had its back deck set on fire. Two residents said they saw someone in a high-visibility reflective jacket outside their home when the fire started.

Court documents say Ramey also had a credit/debit card belonging to one of the home's residents in her jail property bag after her arrest.

That same day, two more fires broke out in the South End neighborhood of Tacoma. Camera footage showed a person using a glass Starbucks bottle to douse one of the houses before igniting it with a rag and lighter. A thumbprint on the glass bottle was a match with Ramey, according to court documents.

On January 25, 2022, and into the early morning hours of the next day, nine more fires were reported in Pierce County, believed to be ignited by Ramey.

Tacoma firefighters responded to three fires in the Central Tacoma area that night, all of which were determined to be incendiary.

Then, it's believed Ramey went up to Ruston and started five more fires. While some of them were quickly put out after homeowners noticed them, several of the fires completely engulfed homes and garages.

During this arson spree, Ramey was caught on video at multiple fire locations, and was seen using a stolen credit card at a Chevron. The card was stolen from a burglarized home located right next to a garage that was set on fire, court documents say.

Police say Ramey is also suspected of stealing a Metro Parks truck, using items from inside the truck as fire starters, and wearing a Metro Parks jacket, which she was spotted wearing on multiple occasions.

Court documents state that Ramey's phone records place her at nearly every fire scene, usually right before the fires were reported.

Ramey faces two counts of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, 17 counts of first-degree arson, first-degree attempted arson, residential burglary, second-degree burglary, two counts of first-degree identity theft, second-degree identity theft and theft of a motor vehicle.

The opening arguments in Ramey's trial begin Monday at 9 a.m.