Woman gave teens a lighter, told them how to set house on fire, NC sheriff says
A 48-year-old woman orchestrated a felony when she gave two teens a lighter and told them how to set a house on fire, according to investigators in North Carolina.
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It happened on July 10 at a home under construction near Statesville, and the two teens were ages 15 and 16, the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office reported in court documents.
“On July 30, 2026, the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office began investigating racial slurs spray-painted on a church vehicle and other properties in the Statesville area,” Iredell County Sheriff Darren Campbell said in an Aug. 26 Facebook post.
“Detective (Isaac) Creasy identified two juveniles as suspects and connected them to a nearby home under construction that had been broken into, stolen from, and set on fire.”
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Evidence also implicated an adult, Amber Lee Christley of Statesville, who is alleged to have “provided the juveniles with information on how to set the fire and gave them a lighter,” the sheriff’s office said.
Christley was arrested Aug. 19 and charged with felony burning of a building under construction, felony conspiracy, and two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile, the sheriff’s office said.
Investigators did not release details of her connection to the two teens, who are being prosecuted through the Department of Juvenile Justice.
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Detectives say the teens are charged with:
Statesville is about a 40-mile drive north from uptown Charlotte.
