Cannonball Man Pleads Guilty to Arson

BISMARCK – U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on June 7, 2013, Phoenix Martinez, 19, Cannonball, N.D., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to a charge of arson.

On July 25, 2012, Martinez set fire to the St. James Episcopal Church in Cannonball. The church building was a total loss.

The charge of arson carries a statutory maximum penalty of 25 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs – Standing Rock Agency and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives.

Sentencing for Martinez has been scheduled for Sept. 30, 2013, in U.S. District Court in Bismarck, N.D., at 9:00 a.m.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary Delorme is prosecuting the case.