In July of last year, the man set fire to the Queen of Peace Catholic Church, according to the indictment. According to the complaint, he was inspired to start the fire because of the church’s religious nature. He faces a single count of causing malicious harm to religious property, a hate crime offense under the Church Arson Prevention Act, and a single count of committing a felony through the use of fuel.
The man faces a potential sentence of 20 years in jail if accused of causing malicious damage to religious property. For using fire to commit a crime, he faces an extra statutory sentence of ten years in prison. He may also face a three-year supervised release sentence, as well as a $250,000 fine and restitution.
The probe was undertaken by a series of agencies and services including the FBI, ATF, Florida Bureau of Fire and Arson Explosives Investigations, and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, to name a few.
To read more about the case, please visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr/florida-man-charged-federal-hate-crime-setting-fire-church.
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