Woman caught on camera dumping gasoline on church before it went up in flames, feds say

A 38-year-old woman was indicted after she was accused of dousing a church in gasoline before lighting a flame in Washington, federal officials said.

In 2023, Natasha Marie Odell of Temple, Texas, was caught on camera at the Seattle Laestadian Lutheran Church with what looked like a container to hold gasoline, according to a Dec. 12 news release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington.

A woman who matched the description of Odell was seen moving around the Snohomish County church with the gasoline container before emptying it on the exterior walls and items around the church, officials said.

That’s when the person moves out of camera range before a fire breaks out, and the footage eventually cuts out, officials said.

Further investigating tied the credit card used to buy the gasoline and lighters to Odell, who was visiting relatives in Woodinville, officials said.

There was more than $2.5 million worth of damage to the church, officials said.

Odell is charged with damage to religious property, obstruction of persons in the free exercise of religious beliefs, and use of fire to commit another felony offense.

The first two charges are punishable by up to 40 years in prison, the release said. Using fire to commit a felony is punishable by a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and up to life in prison, prosecutors said.

Lawyer information was not immediately available as of Dec. 13.

She is scheduled for arraignment on Dec. 16, officials said.

This story was originally published December 13, 2024 at 2:01 PM with the headline "Woman caught on camera dumping gasoline on church before it went up in flames, feds say."