Officials are now treating the recent fire at St. Rose Catholic Church as a potential hate crime following the arrest of Jaime Tapia, a 43-year-old Sacramento resident. The blaze, which occurred on Franklin Boulevard near 38th Avenue, caused significant damage to the church, yet, the church community remains resolute in continuing its traditions as planned through alternative means, as reported by KCRA. Tapia, who was apprehended the day following the incident and is currently ineligible for bail, is looking at charges relating to arson and vandalism to a church, as per jail records. He is due for a court appearance on August 20.
The Sacramento Fire Department informed that the suspect attempted to ignite multiple areas of the building, and evidence found at the scene, including a letter, points to the arson being a hate crime, according to ABC10. n aspect Reverend Jose Beltran regards as nothing short of miraculous. "We believe it's a miracle because a fire in 15 minutes can consume a house. This was burning for all most 30 minutes without anyone noticing until we came to extinguish the fire with the help of the fire department," his recount of the event details how the perpetrator set three separate fires in a span of mere minutes before fleeing the scene on a bike.
Despite the significant damage and the ongoing investigation, St. Rose Church leaders are determined to maintain their service schedule and community engagement. "This fire doesn’t affect our life in the church because all our celebrations will continue as normal. The same mass schedule and activities will be done at the Kavanagh Center. That’s our parish hall that we use every Sunday for Spanish mass at 10 a.m.," Reverend Beltran expressed to ABC10. Rehabilitation work on the church will mean the building will remain closed for at least a few weeks.
