Background: The Walmart located at 1275 Lake Ave. in Woodstock, Illinois (Google Maps). Inset: Adilyn Monette (McHenry County State”s Attorney’s Office).
An Illinois woman is accused of pouring camping fuel on multiple baby cribs inside a Walmart and lighting them ablaze while the store was packed with patrons.
Adilyn Monette, 21, has been charged with aggravated arson, the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office announced.
A judge denied her pretrial release after she appeared in court on Friday.
On Wednesday — New Year’s Eve — at about 7:20 p.m., the suspect entered the Walmart located at 1275 Lake Ave. in Woodstock, authorities said. She then proceeded to the camping equipment aisle.
Monette allegedly “removed a can of camping fuel,” put it in a shopping cart, and moved to the baby/infant section of the store. She then “returned to the camping aisle, obtained a second can of camping fuel, and returned to where she had left the cart,” with all of these actions being captured by surveillance footage, authorities said.
“Monette is then seen pouring the fuel on multiple cribs, setting them on fire, and then leaving the store,” the Woodstock Police Department said, noting the defendant allegedly used matches to light the blaze.
Officers were called to the scene and identified the suspect through her vehicle registration.
As firefighters arrived, they found the store being evacuated, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Lake and McHenry County Scanner.
Managers believed the fire caused more than $5 million in damages — both a loss in merchandise and damages to the store.
The building’s automatic sprinkler system allegedly put out the fire, which was in the back of the Walmart. The store is currently listed as temporarily closed.
“Despite there being a full store of customers when this arson was committed, we are grateful for the swift actions of Walmart staff, Woodstock Fire Department, and the Woodstock Police Department that ensured everyone’s safety so that no customers or staff were hurt,” McHenry County State’s Attorney Randi Freese said.
During her court appearance on Friday, Monette was revealed to have a pending criminal charge of arson out of Colorado, “for which she was placed on supervised release pending trial,” prosecutors said.
A possible motive for the more recent case out of Illinois remains unclear. Monette is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 7.
