Woman faces attempted murder charge after North Las Vegas fire

Antanisha Tyresha Ellis was arrested shortly after the fire on charges of first-degree arson and attempted murder, jail records show. She faces the attempted murder charge because of the ages of her parents, who were home at the time, according to the North Las Vegas Fire Department.

The department identified Ellis as a 21-year-old woman, but jail records list her age as 20.

The fire was reported at about 3:45 p.m. Monday on the 800 block of East Nelson Avenue, where investigators suspect that Ellis, upset with her parents, had set fire to a mattress inside a bedroom, the report stated.

Ellis’ father told investigators that he smelled smoke and had to help his wife, who “has a hard time moving around,” out of the apartment. After he got her out, he said, he ran back inside to find his daughter and was “hit in the face with heavy smoke and heat,” according to the report.

She was nowhere to be found, he said.

Ellis later turned up while crews were evaluating her parents outside the apartment. She walked up to them and said she “wanted to set the fire and go to jail because jail was better than living with them,” the report stated.

After she was taken into custody, Ellis also told police she wanted to “live in jail,” admitting that she used a blue lighter to start the fire, the report shows.

Ellis remained held Wednesday on $20,000 bail at the Las Vegas Detention Center, according to jail records.

Contact Rio Lacanlale at rlacanlale@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @riolacanlale on Twitter.