She Claimed She Tried To Rescue Roommates In a Fire. It Turned Out She Started The Blaze That Killed Four.

She originally hailed herself as a bit of a hero, saying she tried to save her roommates as a fire blazed at their townhome. Turns out, she's the one who set the fire, which killed four of the people inside.

Now, Bobbie Sue Hodge, 63, of Edgewood, Maryland, will likely spend the rest of her life in prison. According to Fox Baltimore, Hodge is facing life in prison plus another 60 years.

According to authorities, around 2:30 a.m. May 9, 2019, firefighters from several agencies responded to the 1800 block of Simons Court for the report of a fire. Firefighters were unable to put out the fire before it claimed the lives of Hodge's third-floor housemates —Ernest Lee, Dionne Hill and Kimberly Shupe — and injured second-floor inhabitant Mary Elizabeth Kennedy, who died months later from the incident.

According to Fox Baltimore, Hodge was renting the Edgewood townhome with eight others. At the beginning, Hodge told authorities that she had tried to rescue others from the blaze. Hodge and the other people who lived on the first floor got out of the fire uninjured.

According to the Daily Voice, Harford County State’s Attorney Albert Peisinger said that first responders found the third floor of the building completely engulfed.

Upon further investigation by the Maryland State Fire Marshal, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosions and the Harford County Sheriff’s Office led authorities to believe Hodge was a suspect, and she was later arrested.

On Oct. 25, Hodge was convicted of arson, four counts of felony murder and three counts of second-degree assault.

"This tragedy shocked our Harford County community,” Peisinger said. “It is my hope that the verdict is a first step towards healing for the surviving victims and the families of those who lost loved ones.”