Police: Woman set on fire last month in West Virginia dies

BECKLEY, W.Va. – Police say a West Virginia woman allegedly set on fire by her boyfriend last month has died.

Beckley police Sgt. Morgan Bragg says 48-year-old Belinda Cox died at a Pittsburgh hospital Wednesday night. Local media groups report 47-year-old Dwayne Michael Lane was arraigned Thursday on a murder charge.

According to a criminal complaint, witnesses told police Cox was doused in gasoline and a paper towel and lighter were used to ignite the fluid Sept. 17. She was found unresponsive in a neighbour’s yard. Authorities say they later learned that Cox and Lane had argued.

Lane also faces charges of arson, child neglect, kidnapping and domestic battery. He was being held without bond in the Southern Regional Jail.

It wasn’t immediately known whether Lane has an attorney.