Woman accused of fatally setting boyfriend on fire at Arlington gas station

Police allege 24-year-old Breana Johnson pumped gasoline into her vehicle where 25-year-old Ricky Doyle was sitting July 18 and then “intentionally ignited it.” Police said Doyle was severely burned, and they were notified of his death Tuesday

Johnson was initially arrested on a charge of aggravated assault, which police said Wednesday will be upgraded to murder. She does not have an attorney listed in court records.

About 8:45 p.m. July 18, Doyle’s sister called 911 to report that Johnson was hitting him as he sat inside Johnson’s Jeep, according to an arrest-warrant affidavit.

A short time later, police received multiple 911 calls about a man on fire near a Jeep at a gas station in the 1900 block of East Mayfield Road, near New York Avenue, the affidavit says.

Witnesses told police they saw Johnson and the man arguing in the Jeep, and one said they heard Johnson tell the man “I’m going to kill you,” according to the affidavit.

The gas station clerk told officers Johnson walked into the store and bought 50 cents worth of gasoline, the affidavit says. Another witness told police they saw Johnson pump the gas into the back seat of the Jeep before walking around to the driver’s side and igniting it.

The affidavit says witnesses saw the man get out of the Jeep engulfed in flames and run through the parking lot before someone used a fire extinguisher on him.

One witness said Johnson claimed she was smoking, which caused the gas to ignite, according to the affidavit, but another witness said Johnson intentionally set him on fire. Witnesses said Johnson was smiling as she left the store and drove off in the Jeep, police wrote in the affidavit.

Police said video footage from the gas station is consistent with the witnesses’ account.

Doyle was taken to a hospital and later transferred to a burn center in critical condition. He was unable to speak with police because of his injuries, the affidavit says.

Johnson has been in custody at the Tarrant County jail since her July 19 arrest on the assault charge. Her bail is set at $50,000.