Volunteer Firefighter Arrested for Three Arsons

BEAUREGARD PARISH- The Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal has arrested a female volunteer firefighter after she confessed to setting three separate fires in Longville and Alexandria since last month.

Kelly DeVille (DOB 03/14/1983) was booked into the Beauregard Parish Jail Monday, June 25, on two counts of Simple Arson.  DeVille had previously been booked in the Rapides Parish Jail by authorities in Alexandria for two counts of Aggravated Arson and one count of Simple Arson.

On June 15, the Alexandria Fire Department’s Fire Prevention Bureau contacted the LAOSFM regarding an arrest they made in a hotel fire.  The suspect, DeVille, was a non-active member of the Longville Volunteer Fire Department.

Investigators learned DeVille lives 100 yards from two suspicious structure fires that occurred on the same day in May that are under investigation by the LAOSFM.

In those cases, a fire call was placed around 2 a.m. on Monday, May 21, to an abandoned mobile home in the 100 block of Dusty Lane in Longville.

Investigators learned this was the third fire on this property in two days. The first was a mattress set on fire at the front of the property on May 19. The second was a truck bed camper, also located at the front of the property, a day later.

A second call came just before Midnight on the 21st to an abandoned home in the 200 block of Dusty Lane.

Both cases were ruled incendiary.

In an interview with investigators on Monday, June 25, after initially denying involvement, DeVille confessed to intentionally setting both of those fires, as well as admitting to the Alexandria hotel fire.

DeVille blamed her behavior on alcohol and drug impairment due to depression.

This is the second volunteer firefighter from this department arrested this month.

“It is so disheartening to hear of people entrusted by their communities to protect them, but instead, put their communities and fellow firefighters in danger with set fires like this,” said State Fire Marshal Chief H. “Butch” Browning, “I know the majority of our state’s fire service, including the Longville Fire Department, is full of good people with goodwill. I hope cases like this don’t diminish the spirit of the true servants in fire departments across Louisiana, nor the faith their communities have in them.”