Overview
- Rita Montgomery, 50, the children’s grandmother, is charged with aggravated arson, two counts of second-degree murder, and related offenses tied to incendiary devices and prohibited activities.
- Alonzo Cooksey, 45, was arrested on prohibited-activities and contributing-to-delinquency counts, while the girls’ aunt and uncle, Shanika Spearman and Bobby Grant, were booked on contributing-to-delinquency charges.
- Authorities say the contributing-to-delinquency counts stem from a 15-year-old who escaped a Monroe juvenile detention center and was later found living at the Milton Street residence.
- The teen was initially arrested on two murder counts in October but a grand jury declined to indict in November after investigators faced limited video evidence that did not capture the fatal front fire.
- Fire officials say the case remains active with possible additional arrests, and they are reviewing whether Montgomery could be linked to other past fires at locations where she lived.