Man charged in California courthouse explosion also accused of 3 arson fires

LOS ANGELES — A California man has been hit with additional charges in a courthouse bomb attack that injured five people, officials said Tuesday, including for three local arson fires. Nathaniel McGuire, 20, was charged by federal officials last week with maliciously damaging a building with an explosive. Santa Barbara County prosecutors are charging him with 10 counts, including two counts of attempted murder, use of an explosive device with the intent to murder, and carrying a loaded firearm. He is also being charged with arson of forest land in connection with three fires that occurred on the outskirts of Santa Maria, a city of about 110,000 in California’s central coast region, that officials say were set in preparation for the courthouse attack. McGuire was arrested Sept. 25 at the Santa Maria Courthouse where he was about to be arraigned on an illegal gun possession charge when an explosion damaged the building and injured five people. Authorities said they later found ammunition, a rifle, a suspected bomb, fireworks and 10 Molotov cocktails inside the car and other materials used in making explosives during a search of McGuire’s home. In a federal court filing, federal authorities said McGuire told law enforcement after his arrest that he had gone to the courthouse planning to kill deputies working at the security desk. “You guys are the real criminals,” McGuire shouted, appearing visibly distressed as his defense attorney tried to calm him down. After his federal case, he will be transported back to Santa Barbara County to face the additional charges. – This Summarize was created by Neural News AI (V1). Source: https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/man-charged-california-courthouse-explosion-accused-3-arson-114411091