A Byram man will spend the next 60 years in prison for a gruesome double-murder in which he set his roommates on fire on Easter Day 2023.
Hinds County District Jody Owens announced Wednesday that Marcos Uriel Lara Perez, 33, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to two counts of second-degree murder.
On April 9, 2023, Perez intentionally doused his roommates in gasoline before setting them and the house they shared on Gary Drive on fire. The arson followed a physical altercation between Perez and the roommates.
The Byram Police Department and Byram Fire Department responded to the fire and treated several others for injuries on the scene before transporting them to the hospital. The remains of Filibert Torres, 77, were found on the scene, and Jose Thomas Segura Juarez, 45, died from his injuries two days later on April 11, 2023. Five others were injured during the attack.
Surviving victims informed investigators that the fire had been deliberately set by Perez.
Perez was set to stand trial on Jan. 12, but a week before, he pleaded guilty. He was sentenced to a total of 80 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections with 20 years suspended.