A man who set fire to an LDS church in Kearns after stealing checks from the clerk's office will spend five years in prison.
Angel Diaz-Juarez was also ordered Thursday to repay The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints nearly $901,000 in damages, although U.S. District Judge Dee Benson said that was unlikely to happen.
"None of us here are really all that hopeful that you're going to repay that," Benson told Diaz-Juarez. The 36-year-old Mexican national is expected to be deported after he serves his 60-month sentence.
Although federal sentencing guidelines called for a sentence between 46 and 57 months, the arson charge to which Diaz-Juarez pleaded guilty to in March carries a five-year minimum mandatory sentence.
Diaz-Juarez also pleaded guilty to possession of a forged green card.
As part of his plea agreement, Diaz-Juarez admitted to entering the LDS chapel at 5133 S. Heath Ave. at about 5 a.m. on Aug. 2, 2003. After kicking in the door to the clerk's office and taking several blank checks, Diaz-Juarez started the fire using his cigarette lighter and left the building.
According to court documents, Diaz-Juarez forged four checks belonging to the church for a total of $2,300.