Middle Georgia teen charged with setting fire that killed two pleads guilty to murder
A Middle Georgia teen accused of setting a house fire that killed her mother and brother pleaded guilty to multiple charges, including murder, in a Monroe County courtroom Wednesday.
Candace Walton was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for the murder of Tasha Vandiver, 46, and 21-year-old Gerald Walton. She also received a 10-year sentence for first-degree arson, according to Monroe County District Attorney Jonathan Adams.
On Feb. 27, 2020, Walton’s three-bedroom house located half a dozen or so miles southwest of Forsyth caught fire, killing Vandiver and Gerald Walton, who investigators believe were asleep. Police caught Candace Walton, then 16 years old, that afternoon about 400 miles away in western Kentucky driving her mother’s 2007 Chevrolet Malibu.
She was extradited to Georgia and eventually charged with two counts of murder, first degree arson and theft.
Adams noted that Walton “expressed remorse” and took responsibility for her actions, although she did not divulge her motivation for setting the fire.
Investigators have long believed Walton wanted to leave her family in Georgia and live with her boyfriend Kaleo Pangelinan in Oregon. The pair had met while both were students at Mary Persons High School in Monroe County.
Pangelinan, who was 17 at the time, was charged with two counts of murder in connection with the deaths and has not yet been tried. His attorney has previously argued that Pangelinan had “no hand” in the murders.
Walton will serve a minimum of 30 years in prison before she’s eligible for parole.
Telegraph reporter Joe Kovac Jr. contributed to this story.
This story was originally published February 2, 2022 at 2:17 PM.
