Abbotsford Woman Scheduled for Sentencing for Burning Down her Home Found Dead the Day of Her Court Date
Friday, April 29th, 2016 -- 10:26 AM
-The Colby-Abbotsford Police Department and Wisconsin Department of Justice are investigating the death of an Abbotsford woman who was scheduled to be sentenced for burning down her home and making a false insurance claim.According to court records, back in August of 2010, the Thorp Fire Department was dispatched to a house fire on Stanley Street in Thorp. Investigators determined that the fire was caused by a lightning strike to the home of 44-year-old Susan Luraas. However, in June of last year, she contacted the police and said that she started the fire with a candle lighter. She also stated that she was behind it and her husband was not involved. She and her husband were paid $181,688 by the insurance company for the incident.
Luraas entered a no contest plea and was found guilty of, two counts of presenting a false insurance claim and two counts of the unsafe burning of a building back in December of 2015. She was scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday afternoon in Clark County Court, but she didn’t show because she was found dead in her home on Elm Street in Abbotsford that afternoon. There’s no word on whether Luraas’ death has any connection to her legal troubles.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.