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TROY, Ill. (TCD) — A 41-year-old man entered a guilty plea this week in connection with the 2022 death of his ex-girlfriend’s 69-year-old mother, who died in a fire he started.
According to Madison County State’s Attorney Tom Haine, Michael Sloan Jr. pleaded guilty on Monday, Jan. 8, to the first-degree murder of Susanne Tomlinson. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 26 and faces up to 50 years in prison.
As part of his plea, Sloan confessed to setting Tomlinson’s home ablaze in the 500 block of Wood Thrush Street on Sept. 22, 2022, “knowing that she was inside.”
According to the Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office, Sloan poured gasoline on Tomlinson and her duplex before setting the fire. He also tried to kill his ex-girlfriend, identified by KSDK-TV as Courtney Tomlinson, by “binding her with zip-ties” and dousing her with gasoline as well.
Courtney Tomlinson told KSDK, “He grabbed the gas can, opened up my bathroom door, and threw it in my face.” Courtney Tomlinson also said he “tortured” her mother, and “then he doused himself.”
Sloan’s ex-girlfriend eventually escaped and called for help after a neighbor saw her running down the street.
According to Haine, when officers arrived on scene, Sloan held a “cigarette lighter above his head,” and then he flicked the light, causing a “fireball.”
Assistant State’s Attorney Lauren Maricle said in court that Sloan had “yelled to police that he intended to kill everyone.”
The flames and smoke made it difficult for officers to enter the home, but they eventually rescued Sloan from the fire and transported him to a hospital for medical treatment. Following his release, he was booked into the Madison County Jail on charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder, aggravated arson, and aggravated unlawful restraint.
An autopsy later showed Susanne Tomlinson died due to smoke inhalation and burn injuries, according to the state’s attorney’s office.
In a statement, Haine said his office plans to seek the full 50-year prison term. He added, “This was an especially heinous and cruel crime.”
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