Suspect in car fire engulfed in flames

SANTA ROSA COUNTY, Fla. (WALA) - CAR TORCHED BY MASKED MEN

Katrina Figuerou was trick-or-treating with her kids Halloween night when she got a frantic call from her husband.

"You need to get home. Somebody blew up your dad's car," Figuerou recounted from their conversation.

Witnesses said that Figuerou's car was set on fire by two masked men. Neighbor Mandy Philyaw saw the men. She also saw what happened when one of them got too close as the car exploded. Doused in fuel, the arsonist caught fire too.

"I saw the man on fire rolling around in the front yard. Then I saw him proceed to the woods where he was catching the woods on fire, and then I saw him come out of the woods," Philyaw said.

Philyaw said the other arsonist put out the man who was on fire and then they drove off, leaving the Figuerou family with a car that is a complete loss.

For the Figuerou family, the car is more than just a Cadillac. It was originally owned by Katrina's grandmother who has since passed away. For them, the car had sentimental value.

TRACKING DOWN A BURNED ARSONIST

Sergeant Scott Haines with the Santa Rosa County Sheriff's Department said a man checked into West Florida Hospital shortly after the incident with severe burns and was subsequently taken to the USA Burn Center, but they haven't arrested anyone yet.

"We can't verify at this point in the investigation whether this is one of the suspects involved in this or not," Sergeant Haines said. "That's something we're definitely looking into."

Figuerou said the car was insured, but there's no replacing her family's peace of mind.

LOOKING FOR OTHER SUSPECTS

Sergeant Haines said the sheriff's office is also investigating the people that dropped off the burn victim.