A Middle Georgia teenager is pushing not to be brought back to the state after she was accused of starting a fire that killed two people in her home, officials said.
Candace Walton, 16, refused extradition to Georgia during a court hearing Monday in McCracken County, Kentucky, according to Monroe County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Anna Lewis.
Walton faces two counts of murder, a count of arson and multiple counts of theft by taking following the deadly house fire that ripped through the home on Old Zebulon Road on Thursday, AJC.com previously reported.
First responders arrived at the structure about 3:30 a.m. and found about half of the building engulfed in flames. Two bodies were found inside.
RELATED: 16-year-old faces murder, arson charges after Middle Georgia house fire kills 2
The sheriff’s office initially identified the two victims as Walton and her brother, 21-year-old Gerald Walton, but they later retracted Candace Walton’s identification, saying that victim’s identity was not accurately confirmed.
On Friday, Lewis said investigators believe Gerald Walton and the siblings’ mother, Tasha Vandiver, are the two victims, but they are waiting for the GBI to confirm both identities.
Vandiver has not been seen since the fire and was reported missing by authorities shortly after.
RELATED: Mom missing after Middle Georgia house fire kills 2, including her son
Candace Walton was found by deputies in western Kentucky near Paducah, more than 450 miles from Monroe County. Authorities pulled her over in her mother’s stolen car late Thursday, leading to her arrest.
She was stopped because the vehicle had been marked as stolen or in danger, Lewis said. Because of the “suspicious nature of the incident,” Candace Walton was taken into custody, allowing Monroe County deputies to visit and interview her in jail.
The Monroe County sheriff's office is working to obtain a governor's warrant to bring Walton back to Georgia, Lewis said. A governor's warrant is only issued for the purpose of returning people to a state in which they are facing charges.
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