A New Mexico man is facing two federal charges after he allegedly tried to burn down a church’s preschool and a strip mall in Yucaipa.
Jonathan A. Barajas Nava, 36, of Albuquerque, was arrested April 24 after he allegedly poured “an ignitable liquid” on the entrance to the Retreat Church and Yucaipa Christian Preschool and set it ablaze, then did the same on the gas meters at a Yucaipa strip mall.
While the U.S. Department of Justice did not detail who was endangered at the strip mall, officials said “there were 48 preschoolers and 14 staff members inside the church preschool at the time, but no one was injured.”
Nava faces two charges of attempted destruction of property by means of fire, and he’s scheduled to be arraigned in U.S. District Court in Riverside on Tuesday.
He is being held in custody pending trial.
If convicted, Nava faces a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of 40 years in federal prison.