Tonya Bundick

MADISON HEIGHTS, Va. - Tonya Bundick, convicted over a decade ago for her role in the now-infamous Accomack County arsons in 2012 and 2013, is scheduled to be released from prison Wednesday.

Bundick, 52, was first sentenced in 2014 with a release date set for Sept. 24, 2025, according to the Virginia Department of Corrections. Bundick and her ex-fiance Charles Smith were found to be responsible for more than sixty arsons, targeting abandoned structures, between Nov. 2012 and April 2013 in Accomack County.

The first fire was set on Nov. 12, 2012, and would be followed by a months-long investigation as continuous fires sprang up across the Eastern Shore. The spree would go on to terrorize Accomack County residents and exhaust local firefighters.

Smith pleaded guilty to his part in 2013 and was released from prison nearly two years before Bundick on Oct. 31, 2023. During his trial, he testified that he had set the fires, but the spree was Bundick’s idea. 

Bundick was held at Blue Ridge Regional Jail, Amherst, in Madison Heights, VA, according to inmate records.

For more on Bundick, Smith, and the Accomack County fires, you can watch WBOC’s Emmy-award winning special “Burning Down Accomack - 10 Years Later" at this link.

 

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Digital Content Producer

Sean joined WBOC as Digital Content Producer in February 2023. Originally from New Jersey, Sean graduated from Rutgers University with bachelor’s degrees in East Asian Studies and Religion. He has lived in New York, California, and Virginia before he and his wife finally found a place to permanently call home in Maryland. With family in Laurel, Ocean Pines, Berlin, and Captain’s Cove, Sean has deep ties to the Eastern Shore and is thrilled to be working at WBOC serving the community.

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