'I hope your mom likes being burned alive': Michigan woman, 2 kids dead in house fire

LANSING, Mich. (WJW) -- A woman accused of setting a fire that killed her boyfriend's mother and two nephews reportedly texted the boyfriend right before the blaze.

The Lansing State Journal reports that an affidavit states the text said: “I'm outside your mom's house ... I hope your mom likes being burned alive.”

Abbieanna Williams, 21, denied setting the Sept. 3 fire that killed Melissa Westen, an 8-year-old and a 4-year-old, the State Journal reports. Williams faces three charges of homicide and three of first-degree arson in the case.

A friend told police Williams was angry at the boyfriend at the time because she thought he was cheating on her. The friend told police he dropped her off on the street where the boyfriend's mother lives at between 11:20 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. the night of the fire.

Just before dropping her off on Elizabeth Street, the friend says, Williams told him she was going to throw a rock through the window, according to the affidavit obtained by the State Journal. The friend left the area.

A neighbor told police Williams asked to borrow their lighter before walking toward the mother's home shortly after.

A neighbor's surveillance footage recorded the sound of glass breaking at 11:24 p.m. on Sept. 3, according to the affidavit. The same video also shows a woman walking back and forth on Elizabeth Street between 11:25 p.m. and 11:38 p.m.

The Lansing Fire Department was called at about 11:45 p.m. and responding firefighters found flames coming out of the front and side windows of the house, the department said.

The Lansing State Journal reports investigators at first ruled out arson as a cause of the fire. Lansing Public Information Director Robert Merritt said tips, witnesses and additional evidence changed the direction of the investigation, according to the State Journal.