Arson suspect sentenced to four years in prison

IMPERIAL COUNTY, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - The man convicted of starting four fires in Calexico in April 2023 is sentenced in court.

33-year-old Richard Urena received four years in state prison for arson. 

Urena first appeared in court in May 2023 and was allowed to attend a drug program in Riverside County. 

Urena attended the program for about a week but failed to return.

His lack of follow-through did not sit well with the judge.

“The judge felt like he was originally giving him a break by allowing to go to the program and he wasn’t willing to take those chances again which is what I was asking for. I was suggesting for the judge to allow him to go to a local program,” stated Donald Levine, an attorney.

Urena was convicted of starting four fires with the largest at a cold storage facility