Woman sentenced for torching tow truck

PORTLAND, Ore., Dec. 4 (UPI) -- A 20-year-old woman in Oregon who set a tow truck on fire has been sentenced to two years' probation.

Elizabeth Allen pleaded no contest to second-degree arson Thursday in Multnomah County Circuit Court, The Oregonian reported. She was arrested Sept. 16 after two witnesses said they saw her walk to the back of the tow truck, light something and flee.

Initially it was believed that Allen was angry because her Buick LeSabre was being towed, but authorities say they now believe she was angry that someone else's car was being towed from an apartment complex for being parked without a permit.

Tow truck driver Christopher Valdez said when was hooking up the car, an intoxicated mob ran out of the apartments, the newspaper reported.

"I think they got themselves worked up into a drunken frenzy," said Darian Stanford, the deputy district attorney who prosecuted the case. "And everybody gets a little angry at tow truck drivers."