Woman arrested for torching homeless man’s tent in Athens

Michelle Nicole Howard

By Joe Johnson

Michelle Nicole Howard was arrested Thursday night reportedly for setting fire to her boyfriend’s tent in a fit of rage over his having affairs with other women.

According to a report from the Athens-Clarke County Police Department, an officer was patrolling North Avenue at about 9:07 p.m. when he saw smoke billowing from a wooded area near Dr. Martin Luthier King Jr. Parkway.

Some bystanders gave the officer a description of 36-year-old Howard, who they said had burned a tent to the ground, and she was soon located and arrested nearby where she was arguing with a group of people.

Howard, who police said reeked of alcohol, tried to explain that she had set a small fire some distance from the tent and that her boyfriend spread it “to engulf the tent and surrounding area.”

However, witnesses said that they saw Howard directly set the tent on fire, according to police.

The 65-year-old boyfriend was not in the tent at the time.

He reportedly lost property valued at about $2,000 that went up in flames, including clothing, a cellphone, the 15-person tent itself, and a smaller tent.

Howard was charged under the Family Violence Act with first-degree arson, and is being held with no set bail at the Clarke County Jail.