SARASOTA (970 WFLA) -- A Brandon resident is sitting in jail in Hillsborough County, facing charges of murder and arson.
Sarasota sheriff's deputies who investigated a fire on Interstate 75 near Osprey October 15th, determined that the burning minivan was torched by its owner, Michael Clark, 34. Inside, the body of his girlfriend, Kristen Kelley, also 34.
Deputies say Clark beat Kelley to death, following an argument outside a pool hall in Valrico early that morning. They found a gas can and lighter inside the minivan, and blood on his knuckles, which they say belonged to Kelley.
Kelley is the mother of three children by Clark. He was arrested in September on an aggravated assault charge in Hillsborough County, when detectives say he placed a knife at Kelley's neck and threatened to kill her, then himself.