WAUKESHA — A woman walking her dogs was set on fire by a complete stranger.
This actually happened in Waukesha back in September.
“I thought I was [going to] die, I really did,” said Amber Fuller, 30 years old.
Amber remembers the day about three months ago when she was walking her dogs Brady and BB. She says she saw a man walking towards her holding an aluminum can.
She says that man set her on fire.
“He was close enough to pour that [accelerant] on me. When I smelled it, that’s when I was like ‘Oh you need to get away, you need to run.’”
She tried to run but fell down and, “As I brought my arm up to shield myself is when you know he, reached down... and that was it.”
“Did he say anything to you?” asked TMJ4 News’ Julia Fello.
Amber replied, “No, nothing the entire time, which was bizarre. Just very aggressive and lots of rage.”
While she was on the ground, she let go of her dog’s leashes, likely saving their lives, “Because they too had that accelerant on them. The people that found them, they smelled it on them. So, me letting them go probably prevented them from getting burned too.”
Amber suffered second and third-degree burns to her arm, entire back, abdomen, and thumb. She spent six days in the hospital, undergoing skin graft surgery, and raking up medical bills. At the time of the attack, Amber did not have health insurance, “Right now its reaching $100,000.”
She is relying on donations events, her GoFundMe account, and free therapy, “That’s been a journey of mine and will continue I'm sure.”
All while still waiting for the man accused of the crime to be held accountable. 39-year-old Joel Murn told police he mistook her for a cousin he intended to kill.
“The whole mistaken identity thing,” said Fuller, “That put a sense of fear in people.”
Murn is charged with attempted murder. More than three months after the attack, Amber is more focused on new opportunities, working as a physical therapist at One Source Wellness & Chiropractic in Brookfield.
“I’m learning burn scar massage therapy,” she says.
Next summer, she hopes to become a counselor at a burn camp for children, “I always tell people I think I’m going to come out of this stronger somehow.”
The case against the suspect is not over. The next hearing is set for Feb. 2021. The suspect is also charged with setting his grandparents' shed and garage on fire and striking his grandfather with his vehicle.
