Portales woman charged with arson

A Portales woman last week was charged with arson after police allege she started a fire that destroyed the house where she was living and three vehicles.

Leticia Tarango, 23, told police she started the fire on Wednesday because a brown shirt reminded her of “painful memories,” court records show.

“(S)he decided to tear the shirt up and then set it on fire,” according to an affidavit for arrest filed in Portales’ magistrate court.

The woman said she attempted to put out the fire with a glass of water after flames spread to a bed, but it didn’t work.

“When she had not been able to extinguish the fire Leticia decided to just let the whole house burn down. She said this had made her feel better,” the court document reads.

Tarango also told police she had been using methamphetamine that morning, records show.

Records show the home, in the 2200 block of Poplar Drive, was a “total loss” and three vehicles outside the residence – a Chevrolet Impala, a Dodge pickup and a Honda SUV -- were also “likely total losses.”

Records show Tarango was in the Portales jail on Friday. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.