Man charged with setting Roxbury fire that killed woman in her sleep

BOSTON (WHDH) — Eight months after a deadly fire destroyed a home in Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood, a man was called to court Wednesday on second-degree murder and arson charges.

The fierce blaze in November caused the George Street home to collapse, killing one woman and leaving another person with life-threatening injuries.

Marcus Dozier, 46, is charged with torching the home and murdering a woman who was sleeping inside.  Michelle Trentor, 29, was left trapped inside as flames engulfed the home. Trentor’s boyfriend, 37-year-old Luis Maldonado, suffered burns over the majority of his body.

“He should be locked up for the rest of his life,” neighbor Ernest Aponte said of Dozier.

Residents in the area said the home served as a shelter to homeless people and drug users.

Prosecutors claim Dozier was among the people hanging out at the home. They said he tried to set the home ablaze  the day before, allegedly telling another resident that there was something in the house that he had to “get rid of” and that the fire “had to happen.”

Kenneth Ford, who was staying at the home, has also be charged in connection with fatal fire. He will be arraigned Thursday on arson and second-degree murder charges.

Trentor’s mother said it is all just too much for her to handle. “I love her more than life,” she said.

While Dozier has a lengthy 18-page record, the defense argued that the crime was drug-related and not a violent act.

“There is no claim whatsoever that Mr.Dozier intended any harm to the woman who died,” Dozier’s attorney Michael Roitman said.

A judge ordered Dozier held behind bars without bail.

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