A 41-year-old St. Petersburg woman is facing an attempted felony murder charge after police say she deliberately set fire to a stranger who was pumping gas at a Mobil station Thursday night, leaving the victim with severe burns.
Christine Sherbuk, 41, was filling up her Volvo SUV around 8 p.m. when Eleanor Crawford, also 41, approached and allegedly used a lighter to ignite the gasoline, according to police and an arrest affidavit. The fire engulfed the SUV and left Sherbuk with second-degree burns to her arms and back.
Sherbuk was taken to the trauma center at Tampa General Hospital in serious condition. Police said she has since been stabilized and is expected to survive.
Scotty Gramling, who was parked nearby, told Fox 13 Tampa Bay he ran to help as flames tore through Sherbuk’s vehicle, describing the scene as a “fireball.” He helped the injured woman into his truck and called 911.
Gramling said that just before the attack, he had contacted the police non-emergency line about a separate disturbance he witnessed across the street, where it appeared someone was trying to pull Crawford out of the roadway before a fight broke out. Officers were already responding to that call when the gas station attack occurred.
Police located and arrested Crawford about two blocks from the scene within roughly 20 minutes. The arrest affidavit states that multiple witnesses saw her ignite the gasoline and that the incident was captured on video.
Investigators said Crawford and Sherbuk did not know each other, and no motive has been established.
“I don’t know if alcohol and drugs were involved, but indicative of her history, there might’ve been something that diminished capacity there,” Assistant Police Chief Mike Kovacsev told Fox 13. “Why would she even do something like this?”
Police said Crawford has an extensive criminal record that includes several drug- and alcohol-related charges. It has not been disclosed whether she was under the influence during the attack.
“It’s kind of a unique case because you don’t see anything like this, especially something that results in such horrific burns,” Kovacsev said. “But they went out there, they worked with the fire department, and luckily they were able to get her stabilized, and she’s going to make it.”
Crawford has been charged with attempted felony murder and two counts of arson. She is being held on $350,000 bond ahead of trial. A judge has ordered that she be fitted with a GPS monitor by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office before her release from jail, according to court records.
The case remains under investigation.
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