Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - A Rochester woman will not be required to serve any prison time for starting a fire that caused millions of dollars in damage to a Rochester church.

24-year-old Sesen Tesfay was sentenced Thursday afternoon for a first-degree arson conviction stemming from a fire at Peace United Church of Christ in Rochester. The blaze occurred in the early morning hours of April 18, 2022, and according to court documents, the final damage estimate exceeded $4.4 million.

Investigators Determined Hand Sanitizer Was Used as an Accelerant

According to the criminal complaint against Tesfay, she was accused of using a landscaping rock to gain access to the church by breaking a window. Following the fire, Rochester Fire Department investigators found a large bottle of hand sanitizer inside the church and determined that it had been used as an accelerant by the arsonist.

File photo. Kim David/TSM

The court document says investigators obtained a "geo-fence" warrant that detected that a mobile device was in the vicinity of the church from roughly 1:30 until 2 AM on the morning of the fire. The criminal complaint says the cell phone was registered to Tesfay.

The evidence in the case also included DNA from the rock thrown through the window of the church and the hand sanitizer bottle that was matched to Tesfay. The charges also stated that a number of items that had been stolen from the church were found in her residence when investigators executed a search warrant in July 2022.

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Tesfay was originally charged with first-degree arson, second-degree burglary of a religious building, first-degree property damage, and a count of misdemeanor theft. She entered into a plea agreement last October and admitted to the arson charge in exchange for the dismissal of the other charges.

Kim David/Townsquare Media

Her sentencing order calls for Tesfay to serve a six-month jail sentence with work release privileges. She was also given a stayed 57 month prison sentence that she could be required to serve if she fails to meet the terms of her probationary sentence of five years. Tesfay was also ordered to pay $2500 in restitution and perform 200 hours of community work service.

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Gallery Credit: Curt St. John