A Maplewood woman threw a cup of flaming gasoline on another woman over a fight about their shared boyfriend, according to an assault charge filed Wednesday.
Laurel L. Sykes, 32, was charged in Ramsey County District Court with one count of first-degree assault for allegedly causing burns on a 28-year-old woman's upper torso, arms and legs.
"Police have been unable to speak to [the victim], … because she has been intubated and under sedation," the charge said.
She suffered second-degree and possibly third-degree burns near her neck.
According to the criminal complaint:
Police were called to the 700 block of Conway Street in St. Paul about 12:30 p.m. Monday and found the burned woman.
A witness told police that the woman and Sykes had been arguing all morning about a boyfriend. Sykes left, returned with a gas can and poured gasoline into a plastic cup. She lit the cup on fire and threw it at the woman. The woman was taken to a bathroom, where the flames were extinguished.
A second witness said that the woman and Sykes were both involved with the same man. Sykes had been "pickin' " at the woman that afternoon, the witness said.
