Juan Tapia-Garcia
A 19-year-old man found intoxicated and sleeping in a car parked at a South San Francisco apartment complex surrounded by small fires and vandalism pleaded no contest to arson Wednesday, prosecutors said.
Juan Jose Tapia-Garcia of South San Francisco entered the no contest plea to the felony arson charge and a charge in a separate case for selling prescription medication, according to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office.
Tapia-Garcia was found intoxicated and sleeping in a car parked in an apartment garage on Nov. 28. Surrounding cars had slashed tires and a newspaper was burning on the garage floor, prosecutors said. Other cars had been damaged or burglarized.
At the nearby apartments, one doormat had been burned and a chair on another front porch had been burned, according to prosecutors.
Tapia-Garcia was carrying matches similar to those left at one of the fire scenes and a witness identified him as a suspect, prosecutors said.
In exchange for his no contest plea, Tapia-Garcia will be sentenced to no more than a year in jail when he returns to court on Oct. 28, prosecutors said. He remains free on $150,000 bail.
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