JONES COUNTY, Ga. — A Georgia man has pleaded guilty in a case that investigators say began with an argument over a debit card and left a woman with severe burns.
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Roger Evans entered a guilty plea Monday in connection with the April 2026 incident, according to the Jones County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators said the case stemmed from an altercation between Evans and the victim after Evans allegedly used the woman’s debit card without permission.
The sheriff’s office said witnesses reported that gasoline was thrown on the victim during the argument before she caught fire inside a home on Fox Road.
The woman was taken by private vehicle to Piedmont Hospital before being transferred to the burn center in Augusta for treatment.
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Authorities said investigators were not notified of the incident until the following week. As the investigation unfolded, multiple people came forward with information about what allegedly happened.
The victim suffered extensive injuries and spent several months hospitalized while receiving treatment and beginning what officials described as a long road to recovery.
Following his guilty plea, Evans was sentenced to 40 years, with the first 30 years to be served in confinement.
“We hope this resolution brings some measure of peace and closure to the victim,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “We continue to wish her strength and healing as she moves forward in her recovery.”
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