WIGGINS, Miss. (WHLT) – A federal grand jury in Gulfport returned a six-count superseding indictment, charging a man with federal civil rights and arson violations for vandalizing and setting fire to a church.

According to the indictment, Stefan Day, also known as Stefan Pete Day Rowold, set fire to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Wiggins on July 5 and July 7, 2024.

Counts one and four of the superseding indictment charge Day with arson for setting fire to the church. Counts two and five of the superseding indictment charge Day with intentionally damaging, defacing, and destroying religious real property because of the religious character of the property. Counts three and six of the superseding indictment charge Day with using fire to commit a federal felony offense.

If convicted, Day faces a minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each of the arson charges, a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each of the civil rights charges, and a minimum penalty of 10 years in prison for the use of fire to commit a federal felony offense.

The FBI Jackson Field Office investigated the case, with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, the Mississippi State Fire Marshal, and the Wiggins Police Department.