Three teenage girls have been arrested on suspicion of arson after allegedly throwing a lit firecracker into a home, igniting an unborn baby's nursery just two weeks before the child's expected arrival. The incident occurred Tuesday evening at a residence in Citrus Heights, California.
Firefighters responded to the scene and found a mattress burning in the nursery. They were able to contain the blaze to the room, but smoke damage affected the rest of the house. No one was injured in the fire. The parents, Leslie Morgans and Anthony Cadena, had been preparing the room for their son, Noah.
"The whole baby's room is torched. It's done... all the rooms in the house are covered in soot... everything," Anthony Cadena told ABC News. He stated he was playing video games elsewhere in the house when his wife alerted him to the fire. Cadena, with the assistance of a passerby, used a garden hose to help control the flames until emergency services arrived.
Police indicated that the fire was a result of a prior disagreement involving one of the juveniles residing at the home. Morgans expressed disbelief that anyone would target a baby's room, stating, "I just to see that these girls just don't care about anything... it's unbelievable, honestly, that they would do something like that."
Surveillance cameras at the property captured the incident, which Anthony Cadena's mother believes aided investigators in identifying and arresting the suspects. A GoFundMe campaign organized by the family aims to help replace the destroyed nursery items, including furniture, clothing, and other essentials, as well as cover repairs to the room.
Despite the damage and distress, Morgans stated the family has chosen to forgive the teenagers involved. "Our family forgives these girls because that's what we do. We're not holding a grudge against them," she said. "I do hope that something happens to change their perspective. We just hope they learn their lesson from this."