Grandmother found dead in home fire started by her grandson, Missouri cops say

A 19-year-old was arrested after Missouri authorities say he started a fire that killed his 62-year-old grandmother, according to media reports.

Jacob Hearne faces multiple charges, including murder and arson, in the death of 62-year-old Phyllis Schweinel of Mountain View, police said.

The Mountain View Police Department said Schweinel died in the April 19 fire in southern Missouri near the Arkansas border. Hearne was arrested the day after the fire.

Hearne and Schweinel had been living with one another for 10 years, the Howell County Times reported, and the teenager told police “life has just been so hard emotionally and mentally for both of them.”

Hearne told police his grandmother wanted him to end her life, so she took prescription pills and passed out before he set their trailer home on fire, Ozark Radio News reported.

He is being held in the Howell County Jail without bond. Anyone with additional information is asked to contact Missouri State Highway Patrol Troop G at 417-469-3121 or the Mountain View Police Department at 417-934-2525.

This story was originally published April 21, 2022 at 11:35 AM.