AURORA, Colo. — A woman who is charged with more than 30 counts related to a January fire that killed a five-year-old Aurora boy set fire to a blanket inside a ground floor apartment following an argument with her boyfriend over text messages.
After initially denying she was involved, Alondra Michel admitted she started the fire in the early morning hours of Jan. 24, according to an arrest affidavit from the Aurora Police Department. She was arrested later that same day.
Around 1:30 a.m. that morning, Aurora Fire Rescue responded to the fire at 15320 East Evans Ave.
Fire crews rescued multiple people from the building as the fire burned. Crews searched the three floors for potential victims and evacuated nine patients. Three people were taken to the hospital.
A 5-year-old boy, identified as Abner Salmeron-Bautista, was found on a bed in a second-floor unit and taken to the hospital where he died from his injuries.
Fire investigators quickly determined that the fire was intentionally set and believed it originated in a main level unit either on the patio area of the unit or near the front door, the affidavit says.
An arson dog was used to look for signs of accelerant and it "alerted" on several areas outside of the unit, including an area under the stairwell directly in front of the unit. The dog did not alert on the patio area.
After speaking with neighbors, investigators identified the resident of the unit and attempted to contact him. They could not reach him by phone but eventually contacted him when he returned to the complex.
He explained that he had learned of the fire at his residence from a neighbor and went on to say that he left his unit the night before after he and Michel got in a fight.
He reported that Michel found text messages from other women on his phone and they began to argue. During that argument, he said, Michel took his phone, damaged the screen, and then hit him on the chin which resulted in a small scratch.
The man reported that due to Michel's aggressive behavior he left her alone in his unit around 12:30 a.m.
Michel's statements
Investigators contacted Michel who had made a 911 call to report the fire.
She also described the argument over text messages with her boyfriend but said that the two of the remained in the unit together. Michel initially reported that around 12:50 a.m. she heard a "pop" from an upstairs unit. About 30 minutes later she said she heard a loud explosion.
At that point, she reported that she and her boyfriend left the unit. She said her boyfriend left in his car and she left on foot and called 911.
Michel initially stated when she first saw the fire it was in an upper unit and rising upward, the affidavit says. She also reported that a neighbor told her that they had seen someone drive up and throw something toward the unit.
Investigators later listened to Michel's 911 call which was made at 1:27 a.m. During the 911 call, she stated the specific unit where the fire was and it was not a second-story unit as she had previously told investigators.
When confronted about her inconsistent stories, Michel said she used a lighter that she found in the apartment to set a blanket on fire and then placed it on the couch in the front room, the affidavit says. She denied putting any chemicals on the blanket.
Michel said the blanket caught fire immediately and she knew it was going "to get big," the affidavit says. She said she attempted to put water on the fire but it had no effect.
She then left the apartment and called 911.
Michel is next due in court for an arraignment on Sept. 26. According to court records, she faces 34 counts which include:
- First-degree murder- extreme indifference
- Second-degree murder - felony murder
- Child abuse- knowingly or recklessly causing death
- 15 counts of attempted second-degree murder
- 13 counts of first-degree arson
- Third-degree assault-knowingly or recklessly causing injury
- Two counts violent crime- causing serious bodily injury (sentence enhancer)
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