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Sheriff: Woman arrested for setting fire that killed relative, dogs in Brooksville home

Sheriff Al Nienhuis said the 21-year-old admitted to setting the house fire while she knew her relative was asleep inside.

BROOKSVILLE, Fla. — A 21-year-old woman is behind bars after admitting to setting a house fire that killed her relative and several dogs last month in Brooksville, the Hernando County Sheriff's Office reports.

Sheriff Al Nienhuis gave an update Tuesday morning on the deadly fire that happened on Jan. 20 on Harwell Street.

Around 1:20 a.m., crews responded to the fire that was described as "so intense, it took firefighters approximately 90 minutes to extinguish it." Cadaver dogs later found human remains and multiple dead animals inside.

Then on Jan. 23, the sheriff's office received a call from 21-year-old Briauna Amann claiming she was lost in the woods and needed a ride. According to the sheriff, she was using the phone of the woman who died in the fire.

When deputies responded, Amann was gone, though she was later found at a homeless camp in Marion County.

That's when, according to Nienhius, she admitted to getting dropped off at the home by another family member on Jan. 19 and setting the fire while she knew her relative was inside sleeping.

Amann was charged with first-degree murder, arson of an occupied dwelling and grand theft. 

Nienhuis didn't specify what Amann's relationship was with the woman but did say they were related. 

“This is a situation where somebody is trying out of the goodness of their heart to maybe take in somebody with some issues both criminal and maybe some mental health issues and then ends up becoming a victim. In this case, the worst possible outcome resulted in death," the sheriff said.   

Last month, family members told 10 Tampa Bay that the woman killed was Sharon Schwindt.

She was one-of-a-kind. She was loving. She was just in nature and loved her animals," Schwindt's son Johnny Driscoll said. "If you ask anybody around here that knew her and was her friend, they'd know. Her main thing was bringing our family together, getting along, and letting the kids enjoy the beautiful nature out here."

Driscoll and his siblings plan to honor their mom's life by rebuilding her animal sanctuary. If you'd like to help, you can donate through the family's GoFundMe.

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