Woman charged in fire that killed 4 at Oregon motel

PORTLAND – Felony charges have been filed against a woman accused of starting a fire that killed four people and injured three others at a coastal Oregon motel last summer.

Rebecca Sinclair, 38, of Toledo, Oregon, was arrested Monday and arraigned the following day on charges of second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, reckless burning and recklessly endangering another person, court records show. She has not entered a plea.

Sinclair is being held on $750,000 bail. A judge granted her request for a court-appointed attorney.

“All I can say at this point is the events alleged happened in August of 2016, and I acquired the case a few days ago, so we’re still investigating the allegations,” defense attorney Jonathan Cable said Thursday.

A message left at the home where Sinclair lives were not immediately returned.

Prosecutors have not said what evidence leads them to believe Sinclair is responsible for the blaze that swept through the City Center Motel in Newport on Aug. 5.

Newport Fire Chief Rob Murphy said the department plans to release information about the cause of the fire on Thursday afternoon or Friday.

Authorities said in August that the fire started on the bottom floor of the two-story motel.

Police said the bodies of 51-year-old Tammi Sue Hepner and 63-year-old Allen Hepner, both of Portland, were found in the rubble from room 221.

Crews found the bodies of Sandra Shoemaker, 60, and Danny Shoemaker, 64, both of Springfield, while searching the remnants of room 220.

The rooms had been immediately engulfed, and flames blocked the exits.