Roger Evans must serve 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to two family violence charges in Jones County.

GRAY, Ga. — A Georgia man has been sentenced to 40 years after pleading guilty to aggravated assault-family violence and aggravated battery-family violence for intentionally setting his girlfriend on fire during an April argument, according to prosecutors. Roger Evans, 52, must serve the first 30 years of the sentence in prison.

The sentence closes the criminal case against Evans about five months after the woman suffered extensive burns at a home on Fox Road in Jones County. The Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office said Evans intentionally set his girlfriend on fire, leaving injuries that required several months of hospitalization and more than 20 surgeries. She continues to recover, prosecutors said. Earlier reports from investigators said the confrontation developed after Evans used the woman’s debit card without permission during a trip to obtain gasoline.

Evans entered his guilty plea Sept. 28, according to local authorities. The final charges provide a more complete picture of the prosecution than was available when Evans was first arrested April 30. At that stage, the Jones County Sheriff’s Office announced an aggravated assault charge while investigators continued examining what had happened. Prosecutors later said Evans pleaded guilty to aggravated assault-family violence and aggravated battery-family violence. The 40-year sentence requires him to spend 30 years confined, with the remaining portion to be served outside prison under the terms imposed by the court.

The case began with an ordinary errand for fuel, according to an arrest affidavit cited in local reporting. Evans asked the woman to take him to a gas station so he could obtain gasoline for a generator being used to power his home. During the trip, the woman received a notification showing that her debit card had been used for a $100 gasoline purchase without her permission. The discovery led to an argument after the pair returned to the Fox Road home. The exact wording exchanged during the dispute has not been publicly established, and authorities have released only limited portions of the investigative record.

Investigators said gasoline became part of the confrontation after they returned. An arrest affidavit reported by Law&Crime said Evans had a gas container and poured gasoline on the woman while threatening to ignite her. Local authorities separately said witnesses reported that gasoline was thrown on the woman during the dispute. Investigators concluded that Evans intentionally set her on fire. The later guilty plea means a jury was not required to decide whether prosecutors could prove that account at trial, and the District Attorney’s Office now describes the act as intentional.

A witness heard the woman screaming and came to help, according to reports based on the investigation. Evans was later seen using a blanket to extinguish the flames. He and the witness placed the injured woman in a vehicle and began driving her for medical treatment. Evans called 911 while they were on the way, authorities said. She was initially taken to Piedmont Hospital and was later transferred for specialized burn treatment in Augusta. Authorities have avoided releasing unnecessary graphic detail about her injuries but have consistently described them as extensive and severe.

What happened next unfolded more slowly than the emergency itself. Jones County investigators said they were not immediately notified about the burning. The incident occurred between the evening of April 23 and the early hours of April 24, according to the sheriff’s office, but investigators first learned about the case several days later. By April 27, authorities had received information that the woman had been admitted to a burn center. As deputies began gathering accounts, multiple people provided information about the events at the Fox Road residence.

A witness told investigators that the argument involved Evans accessing the woman’s money, according to 41NBC’s reporting on the initial case. That witness said Evans threw gasoline on the woman and followed her into the home with a lighter. The witness later found Evans attempting to put out the flames with a blanket, investigators said. Those statements became important to the early investigation because the victim was undergoing intensive medical treatment and authorities had not responded to the residence when the confrontation first occurred.

Deputies arrested Evans on April 30. He was initially listed as 51 in arrest coverage and was identified as 52 by the time of sentencing. Booking information gave his full name as Roger Cecil Evans. The sheriff’s office said at the time of his arrest that the investigation was continuing and released relatively few details while detectives worked through witness accounts and the circumstances surrounding the woman’s injuries. The case ultimately moved from the single publicly announced aggravated assault charge to guilty pleas on two family violence counts.

The woman’s medical treatment extended far beyond the first days after the attack. The District Attorney’s Office said she remained hospitalized for months and underwent more than 20 surgeries. Earlier statements from the sheriff’s office described her as beginning a long recovery after suffering extensive injuries. Prosecutors said that recovery was still continuing when they announced Evans’ plea and sentence. Authorities have not released a detailed medical prognosis, and the woman’s name has not been included in the principal public statements reviewed for this report.

The District Attorney’s Office identified the woman as Evans’ girlfriend when announcing the final disposition. That clarification came after earlier sheriff’s office reporting did not publicly define their relationship. The family violence designations attached to Evans’ guilty pleas are also part of the final court outcome. Prosecutors did not need to present a full trial record after Evans chose to plead guilty, so some details that might otherwise have been tested through testimony, exhibits and cross-examination were never aired before a jury.

The disposition came during a Jones County court week in which prosecutors announced outcomes in several unrelated cases. Assistant District Attorney Cara Fiore prosecuted the Evans case, according to the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office. In its public statement, the office emphasized the work of investigators, prosecutors, victim advocates and others involved in the cases handled that week. For Evans, the result was a sentence that places most of the 40-year term behind prison walls and eliminates the need for a trial in the fire attack.

With the guilty plea entered and the sentence imposed, Evans’ prosecution no longer awaits a trial or verdict. He is required to serve 30 years in prison as part of the 40-year sentence, while prosecutors say the woman he injured remains in recovery after months of hospitalization and more than 20 surgeries.

Author note: Last updated November 10, 2026.