SAN DIEGO, CA – Carey Alice Hernandez, a former bookkeeper, is facing serious time after a federal jury found her guilty of torching Off Road Warehouse in Kearny Mesa, a desperate attempt to conceal a $744,621 theft from the company. The four-day trial revealed Hernandez’s calculated scheme to cover her tracks as finances were audited following a planned sale of the business.
Prosecutors presented evidence showing that between January 2015 and March 2019, while acting as bookkeeper and controller for Off Road Warehouse (ORW), Hernandez systematically siphoned off funds. When the owner decided to sell the business in late 2018, an audit exposed the massive discrepancy. Rather than face the consequences, Hernandez allegedly took matters into her own hands. In the early morning hours of March 28, 2019, she allegedly set fire to the ORW building located at 7915 Balboa Avenue, reducing it to ashes.
The feds didn’t just rely on fire investigators. Surveillance footage became a key piece of the puzzle. Video showed a dark-rimmed SUV circling Hernandez’s Point Loma home shortly before the arson. The same vehicle was then captured on camera heading to, and leaving, the Off Road Warehouse just before and after the blaze. Hernandez then attempted a clumsy cover-up, sending texts to ORW employees claiming her vehicle had light rims, despite evidence to the contrary.
“She tried to convince employees who had changed her vehicle’s rims before the fire that her vehicle had light rims during the time of the fire and thus, the SUV spotted on surveillance cameras could not be hers,” court documents reveal. The lies didn’t hold up. During questioning by ATF Special Agents, Hernandez continued to misrepresent the color of her rims, but the surveillance footage told a different story. These attempts at deception led to convictions on charges of witness tampering and making false statements, in addition to the arson itself.
ATF’s National Response Team (NRT) descended on the scene within 24 hours, quickly determining the fire was intentionally set. “While it is extremely fortunate that no one was physically hurt in this blaze, it was a devastating loss for the company,” said U.S. Attorney Tara McGrath. “This defendant used arson, tampering with witnesses, and deceit to put the community in danger, but the jury held her accountable.” ATF Los Angeles Field Division Special Agent in Charge Chris Bombardiere added, “Arson crimes are not victimless fires…This criminal act devastated a business and the livelihood of several individuals and families.”
Hernandez is scheduled to be sentenced on July 12, 2024, at 9:30 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Jinsook Ohta. She faces a significant prison term for the malicious destruction of a building by means of fire, witness tampering, and making false statements. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney.
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Key Facts
- Agency: ATF
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Press Release
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