Preliminary hearing set for Ogden arson suspect

OGDEN — A judge will decide if there's enough evidence to make a woman stand trial for a series of suspicious fires here.

During an appearance in 2nd District Court on Monday, a judge scheduled a Feb. 2 preliminary hearing for Marianne Mancuso. She is charged with four counts of arson, a third-degree felony, in a series of fires in a blighted neighborhood.

Mancuso, 47, previously has been found mentally competent to face trial. Ogden police have claimed she confessed to the fires, saying she wanted to jump-start a multimillion-dollar redevelopment project planned for the area.

Authorities still are investigating other fires in the neighborhood.

— Ben Winslow

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