Murder suspect: 'I'm just a drug dealer'

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ZANESVILLE, Ohio, Sept. 13 (UPI) -- A man and two women could face the death penalty in Ohio if they are convicted of kidnapping another woman and setting her on fire.

Monica J. Washington, 24, and Katrina M. Culberson, 20, both Canton, Ohio, residents, entered not guilty pleas Wednesday, The (Canton) Repository reported.

A grand jury handed up an indictment charging LaFonse Dixon Jr. with murder. The women were indicted earlier.

All three faces charges including aggravated arson and kidnapping, making them eligible for the death penalty under Ohio law.

Celeste Fronsman, 29, also of Canton, died two days after a motorist found her on a roadside Aug. 26. Fronsman, naked and burned over much of her body, had apparently crawled from the woods and was still conscious and able to talk.

Culberson, in a jailhouse telephone interview with the Zanesville Times Recorder, allegedly said she had "a part" in the crime.

"Being addicted to crack has led me from one bad thing to another," Culberson said. "I beat it once, but then I slipped, and now I'm here."

Dixon told the newspaper he had a sister who died in a fire and would never set someone alight.

"Hey, I'm just a drug dealer just trying to sell my drugs and be with my family," he said.