A 38-year-old woman from Temple, Texas, was sentenced Thursday for setting a Washington state church on fire in 2023.
Natasha Marie O’Dell will spend the next six years in prison after her sentencing on three felonies, Fox 7 reported on Saturday.
In a press release on Thursday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington said O’Dell committed arson in targeting the Seattle Laestadian Lutheran Church (SLLC) in Snohomish County on August 25, 2023.
An image shows the burned-out church building:
She was visiting relatives in Woodinville at the time, and officials later linked her to the crime through cell phone records, credit card records, and surveillance video.
The church was destroyed, and the blaze left the congregation with over $3.2 million in damage. In addition, one firefighter was hurt during the incident. The attorney’s office continued:
Even though the church was destroyed, part of the security system video surveillance survived the fire and depicted O’Dell, moving around the church with the red gasoline container. In the video O’Dell empties the container on the exterior walls of the church and items around the church. O’Dell moves out of camera range and fire is seen growing on the areas where she poured gasoline. Ultimately the video system stops functioning due to the fire.
The investigation tied O’Dell to credit card purchases at an area service station when she purchased just over a gallon of gasoline in a container and some lighters. O’Dell took an Uber to the church to commit the arson.
Officials said O’Dell admitted she told people she knew that she felt angry about churches and informed one of them she was planning to burn down a church building.
Video footage shows firefighters at the scene of the 2025 arson as they worked to quell the flames:
During sentencing, U.S. District Judge Jamal N. Whitehead stated, “This offense was devastating and dangerous. Ms. O’Dell deliberately set fire to a church, causing complete destruction. … The scope of the destruction is staggering. You burned down the spiritual home of a congregation. … The wounds you have inflicted deepen for each day they are away from their home.”
