Oxford County Woman Convicted of Arson

Portland, Maine:  United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced that Jaymi Hutchins, 31, formerly of Gilead, Maine and Rochester, New Hampshire, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to maliciously damaging and destroying property used in interstate commerce by fire.

Court records reveal that on October 25, 2016, Hutchins intentionally set a fire inside a vehicle in the parking lot of a vehicle towing, recovery, repair and sales business located in Lebanon, Maine. The fire destroyed three vehicles, including a commercial wrecker.  Hutchins was apprehended following a two-day investigation which revealed, among other evidence, that she had stolen a vehicle from the business which she crashed and abandoned.

The defendant faces between five and 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. She will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office. 

The investigation was conducted by the Maine State Fire Marshal’s Office; the York and Oxford County Sheriff’s Offices; and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.