UPDATED: Man gets 18 years for Pasadena auto body shop arson

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PASADENA >> A homeless man received an 18-year prison sentence Wednesday after admitting to arson and other charges for torching a Pasadena auto body shop in 2014, officials said.
Jesse Cole Nicholas, 31,pleaded guilty to eight felony counts and one misdemeanor in the Pasadena branch of Los Angeles County Superior Court, Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Jane Robison said. The charges included arson of a structure, arson of a vehicle, auto theft, two counts of burglary and four counts of vandalism and petty theft.
“He was… given two strikes and ordered to pay over $550,000 in restitution,” Derderian said.
The case stems from a Sept. 27, 2014, arson fire that destroyed a building and two cars at Alliance Auto Body, 826 S. Arroyo Parkway, causing more than $375,000 worth of damage, officials said.
In addition to the charges, Nicholas also admitted to the special allegations of using an accelerant in the structure arson, and that the damage exceeded $200,000, Robison said.
The fire, which broke out about 7:20 a.m., was immediately deemed suspicious by fire investigators.
Derderian said the fire scorched a rear building used for detailing and prep work and destroyed two cars parked inside.
Surveillance camera footage depicted a man jumping a fence and breaking into the business just before the flames erupted, officials said at the time.
Nicholas stole a car and drove away, but returned several hours later and broke into several cars before lighting one on fire, Derderian said.
Nicholas, described as a “career criminal,” was believed to be high on drugs during the unusual crime.
He was on felony probation under the terms of AB 109 at the time of the arson, records show.
Police and fire investigators found and arrested Nicholas on outstanding warrants two days after the fire at Central Park.
He was being held on the previous charges when he was positively identified through DNA evidence as the arsonist in mid-October, Derderian said.
A restitution hearing was scheduled for June 1.

PHOTO: Pasadena firefighters work at the scene of an arson fire that caused about $375,000 damage to a building and two vehicles parked at Alliance Auto Shop, 826 S. Arroyo Parkway in Pasadena, on Saturday, Sept. 27, 2014. (Courtesy, Pasadena Fire Department)

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