On April 15, 2011, a large structure fire erupted at 1345 Turnbull Canyon Road, Hacienda Heights, at the St. John Vianney Catholic Church. Two priests residing in the rectory narrowly escaped. The entire 20,000-plus square foot sanctuary was burnt to the ground along with substantial damage to the adjacent rectory. The fire raged for over six hours as fire fighters battled 60 to 100 foot high flames. The loss was preliminarily estimated between $10 million and $17 million dollars.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD), Arson and Explosives Detail (AED) immediately responded to the location and began the preliminary investigation. The fire was determined to be arson. The investigation expanded to include the Federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), FBI Emergency Response Team, in addition to LASD AED. Crime Stoppers and We Tip hotlines were activated and within days of the incident, several credible leads were received.
After a year of complex investigation, Suspect Gregory Shiga was arrested on May 14, 2012 by LASD AED detectives. The case was presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, Target Crimes Deputy District Attorney R. Rose and five felony counts were filed, including Aggravated Arson Likely To Produce Great Bodily Injury With Special Allegations, Arson To An Inhabited Dwelling, Arson To A Structure, Use Of Flammable/Accelerant Incendiary Device and Burglary.
The case was presented at Pomona Superior Court and on July 9, 2013, after more than two weeks of jury trial, the jury found Shiga guilty on all five felony counts. Shiga’s sentencing date is set for July 19, 2013.
This investigation concludes a successful joint investigation by lead investigators from both the LASD AED Unit and the West Covina FBI Office.