An individual from New York State has been sentenced to life imprisonment for setting a fire that tragically took the life of his neighbor. This grave incident has left the community in shock and sorrow.

Anthony Green, aged 60, faced a jury in Onondaga County in December 2025. He was found guilty of several severe charges, including first-degree murder, three counts of attempted murder, and arson. These charges stem from his deliberate actions leading to a fatal fire.

Earlier this week, Judge Mary Anne Doherty of the Syracuse City Court delivered Green’s sentence: life in prison without the possibility of parole. This sentencing follows the tragic death of Shaquoiya Allison, 34, who perished in the blaze that engulfed a residence in June 2024.

The incident unfolded at approximately 11 p.m. in a two-family residence located on South Avenue. On that day, an altercation between Green and his girlfriend, Lorraine Green, prompted a domestic call to law enforcement, as reported by Syracuse.com.

As the fire erupted, Anthony Green was seated on the front porch. Inside, five individuals, including Lorraine Green, were hosting a party upstairs. Unfortunately, as tensions simmered within Green, the fire also began to consume the building, leading to devastating consequences.

In surveillance footage shown to the jury, Anthony Green walks out the door as the flames, visible through the windows, lick higher up the walls and overtake the front porch area. The man’s cadence is slow as he makes his way to a nearby corner store to buy cigarettes.

“The only person who walks away from a fire completely unbothered is the person who set it,” prosecutor Rob Moran told jurors.

As the inferno builds, the defendant is seen making his way back to near the scene of the crime, the footage shows. Then, he settles in at an empty lot across the street – smoking as the home burns.

The judge castigated the defendant during his sentencing hearing – calling his actions “diabolical” according to a courtroom report by Syracuse.com.

“So evil it defies logic,” Doherty said, addressing Anthony Green. “I believe that kind of evil should never be free to hurt anyone again.”

Prosecutors argued that the victim was not the intended target. Rather, the defendant wanted to kill Lorraine Green, who wears a prosthetic leg. That late at night, the woman likely would have removed her engineered leg as she was enjoying herself with friends, presumably complicating her escape from the burning building.

Allison was asleep in one of the back rooms of the residence as the fire raged. Her death was ruled a homicide by smoke inhalation.

The defense, for its part, argued there was no evidence showing Anthony Green had actually started the fire. To that point, prosecutors did admit investigators never determined the exact cause, but argued the defendant’s behavior after the fire, in tandem with the history of domestic strife, was proof enough.

Prosecutors, at one point, also alleged Anthony Green used some kind of accelerant to coax the fire into spreading faster and that he would later admit, to at least one other person, that he was responsible for the fatal pyre, according to court documents obtained by Syracuse-based ABC affiliate WSYR.

In the end, the jury sided with the state.

During the sentencing hearing, Allison’s mother reflected on the caregiving her daughter provided to every person in her life. The victim worked as a caregiver with two different Syracuse-area groups.

“Our family is shattered,” her mother said.

The victim’s obituary remembers her in similar terms:

Her life’s work reflected caring for others. Shaquoiya was a loving & kind woman who will be dearly missed by all who knew her. She leaves to cherish family and friends.

Anthony Green, for his part, maintains his innocence and intends to appeal his conviction and sentence, his defense attorney said.