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Louisiana inmate arrested for aggravated arson

Posted at 4:49 PM, Sep 18, 2018
and last updated 2018-09-18 17:49:05-04

An inmate in Lasalle Parish was arrested Monday for allegedly setting a mattress inside a jail cell on fire.

A spokesperson for the Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal says the fire started Sunday evening in an isolation dorm at the LaSalle I.C.E. Processing Center in Jena where 21-year-old Ulises Garrido-Zamudo was staying because of “discipline issues.”

The fire alarm and sprinkler system alerted staff of the fire, but according to investigators, Garrido-Zamudo refused to exit the cell for staff to attempt to extinguish the fire.

The inmate was taken to the hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation.

After he was released from the hospital, Garrido-Zamudo allegedly confessed to investigators in an interview he set the fire because he was upset over a “family situation” and “the devil tells him what to do.”

He was booked into the Lasalle Parish Jail on one count of aggravated arson.

The Jena Fire Department contacted the fire marshal’s office to assist with the investigation.