Man charged in arson at home of Ukrainian priest in Victoria

A man has been charged in an alleged arson at the home of a Ukrainian priest in Victoria last spring, police confirmed Thursday.

Police and firefighters were called to home in the 1100 block of Caledonia Avenue, next door to the Ukrainian Catholic Church of St. Nicholas, early in the morning of April 20, 2022.

They arrived to find flames engulfing the front doorway and upper level of the house.

At the time, Father Yuriy Vyshnevskyy, a priest at the church, told Global News he believed someone had poured gasoline through the mail slot to start the fire.

Vyshnevskyy’s wife and three daughters were home at the time.

Everyone inside was able to get out, though three people were forced to jump from a second-floor window and one person was rescued by firefighters.

One of the occupants was believed to have life-threatening injuries at the time, though they later recovered.

0:26 One person in life-threatening condition after Victoria house fire

The fire happened amid heightened tensions over the Russian invasion of Ukraine, however, Victoria police said Thursday they don’t believe the blaze was linked to anyone’s ethnic heritage.

“Investigators determined that this was a targeted offence, in which the accused was known to the family, but it was not motivated by hatred towards an identifiable group,” police said in a media release.

Police said they arrested a Nanaimo resident on Wednesday.

He has been charged with arson and disregard for human life. He remains in custody pending a court appearance.