Texas lady sentenced to six years for Washington state church arson assault

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A Texas woman was sentenced to 6 years in jail in reference to a 2023 arson assault on a church in Washington state, in accordance with federal prosecutors.

Natasha Marie O'Dell, 38, was sentenced Thursday on three felonies for the arson of Seattle Laestadian Lutheran Church in Snohomish County, Washington , the U.S. Lawyer's Workplace for the Western District of Washington introduced.

O'Dell pleaded responsible earlier this 12 months to arson, harm to spiritual property and obstruction of individuals within the free train of spiritual beliefs.

"This offense was devastating and harmful," U.S. District Decide Jamal Whitehead stated on the sentencing listening to on Thursday. "Ms. O'Dell intentionally set hearth to a church, inflicting full destruction."

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<source media="(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/672/378/texas-woman-arson-washington-church-sentenced-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/1344/756/texas-woman-arson-washington-church-sentenced-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="378" width="672"><source media="(min-width: 1024px) and (max-width: 1279px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/931/523/texas-woman-arson-washington-church-sentenced-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/1862/1046/texas-woman-arson-washington-church-sentenced-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="523" width="931"> A Texas lady was sentenced to 6 years in jail in reference to a 2023 arson assault on a church in Washington state. (U.S. Lawyer's Workplace, Western District of Washington)

"The scope of the destruction is staggering. You burned down the religious dwelling of a congregation … The injuries you could have inflicted deepen for every day they're away from their dwelling," the choose added.

The choose will decide a restitution fee at a later date.

O'Dell was visiting household when she set hearth to the church in Maltby on Aug. 25, 2023.

She was linked to the hearth via cellphone data, bank card data and surveillance video, in accordance with the plea settlement and the federal indictment.

The investigation tied O’Dell to bank card purchases at a service station, the place she bought some lighters and a container with simply over a gallon of gasoline.

<source media="(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/672/378/texas-woman-6-years-arson-washington-church-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/1344/756/texas-woman-6-years-arson-washington-church-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="378" width="672"><source media="(min-width: 1024px) and (max-width: 1279px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/931/523/texas-woman-6-years-arson-washington-church-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/1862/1046/texas-woman-6-years-arson-washington-church-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="523" width="931"> Natasha Marie O'Dell, 38, was sentenced on three felonies for the arson of Seattle Laestadian Lutheran Church. (U.S. Lawyer's Workplace, Western District of Washington)

Regardless of the church being destroyed, a part of the safety system's video surveillance survived the hearth and captured O’Dell transferring across the church with a crimson gasoline container.

Within the footage, she was seen emptying the container on the outside partitions of the church and objects across the constructing. O’Dell then moved out of the digicam's view and hearth might be seen rising within the areas the place she poured gasoline.

O’Dell admitted to prosecutors that she advised a number of individuals she was offended about church buildings, particularly Seattle Laestadian Lutheran Church. She later advised one other person who she deliberate to burn a nearby church .

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<source media="(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/672/378/texas-woman-church-arson-sentence-washington-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/1344/756/texas-woman-church-arson-sentence-washington-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="378" width="672"><source media="(min-width: 1024px) and (max-width: 1279px)" srcset="https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/931/523/texas-woman-church-arson-sentence-washington-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1, https://a57.foxnews.com/static.foxnews.com/foxnews.com/content/uploads/2025/09/1862/1046/texas-woman-church-arson-sentence-washington-fox-news-001.png?ve=1&tl=1 2x" height="523" width="931"> A part of the safety system's video surveillance survived the hearth and captured the lady transferring across the church with a gasoline container. (Snohomish Regional Fireplace & Rescue)

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The fireplace resulted in additional than $3.2 million in damages to the church, which has incurred extra prices by renting a close-by center faculty to carry their providers a number of occasions per week.

A firefighter was injured whereas combating the flames and was transported to an emergency room.

"Ms. O'Dell acted with excessive disregard for group security when she poured greater than a gallon of gasoline on the church constructing and used a lighter to start the blaze," Performing U.S. Lawyer Teal Luthy Miller stated in a press release. "This conduct put anybody contained in the church, the neighbors across the church, and the firefighters who responded in excessive hazard. It's lucky that just one firefighter suffered accidents."