CHULA VISTA, Calif. — A South Bay woman set on fire by her ex-boyfriend while she was at work has died after being taken off life support, her son confirms.
Amanda Buchanan was at the 7-Eleven in Chula Vista on L Street where she was a manager when Jose Villanueva allegedly set Buchanan and her coworker on fire Saturday morning. Buchanan was pronounced dead Thursday at 3:15 p.m., five days after the attack.
Villanueva is facing multiple felony charges including attempted murder, torture and arson. He pleaded not guilty Wednesday.
At Wednesday's arraignment, the judge said evidence shows Villanueva filling up cups of gasoline, stalking the store then dousing her in gasoline before he set her on fire. Her coworker tried to put out the flames and was burned in the fray as well.
Villanueva was arrested hours later in Redlands, CA.
CBS 8 spoke with Buchanan's son Dominic Rivera at Wednesday's arraignment. He said Villanueva was the on and off boyfriend of Buchanan and he hopes justice is served in his mother's case.
"There’s no way he’s going to get away with that," he said. "He knew exactly what he was doing. My mom’s biggest fear was burning alive.”
Rivera said Wednesday his mother's burns were so severe that he made the difficult decision to take her off life support.
“The extent of her injuries are so severe," he said Wednesday. "I know it’s not a life she would have wanted. She didn’t have enough skin to do skin graphs on her body. On her face she had bones exposed. They were talking about doing where they swap the faces. We just realized it would be too much. It’s not what she would have wanted.”
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