Man Charged with Attempted Murder After Allegedly Dousing Woman in Gasoline and Setting Her on Fire: ‘Just a Nightmare’

A North Carolina man was arrested after allegedly setting a woman — whom police say the suspect lived with — on fire.

On Friday, Dec. 27, Jami Raiziah Griffin, 23, of Sanford was reportedly arrested 11 days after the Dec. 16 incident. He now faces charges of felony attempted murder, felony assault with deadly weapon with intent to kill and misdemeanor assault on a female, the Harnett County Sheriff's Office said, according to reports from WTVD-TV, WNCN-TV and WRAL-TV.

The 20-year-old victim, Ashanti Downey, was taken to the emergency room with third-degree burns on the right side of her body after she had been walking in Sanford near Barbecue Church Road when someone doused her with gasoline and set her on fire, the sheriff's office said, per the outlets.

The Harnett County Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on the incident.

Downey’s mother, Donecia Davis, said she was shocked that this happened to her daughter. "How could they do this to my baby?" Davis told WRAL-TV. "You didn't have to do this to her."

In a GoFundMe set up to pay for Downey’s medical expenses, her mother shared that her daughter was set to celebrate her 21st birthday on Jan. 1 and wrote that “her life will be forever changed.”

“No parent should have to see their child in the condition my daughter is in,” she said. “I am making her my top priority and have been by her side at the hospital since this incident occurred.”

The fundraiser has surpassed its $75,000 goal, raising more than $88,000 as of Dec. 28 thanks to more than 2,000 donors so far.

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Prior to the arrest, Harnett County Sheriff Wayne Coats said the incident was “just a nightmare for this family.”

He added at the time that they believed the incident “could have been domestic related." It was previously reported by WNCN-TV that deputies initially believed that more than one individual was involved. "It could have been a gang initiation,” Coats explained. “We're mystified by what's happened."

Police said Griffin and Downey had been living together when the incident happened, per WNCN-TV. She was transported to the hospital for medical treatment and is in critical but stable condition, according to the outlet.

Griffin was transported to the Harnett County Detention Center. He is scheduled to appear in court on Monday, Dec. 30.

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