Man sentenced to prison for setting fire in Dona Ana County mobile home

A Las Cruces man was sentenced to nine years in prison after he was convicted of arson.

In January 2016, a manhunt ensued after Sergio Jaquez went to the home of his son’s grandparents and took the two-year-old boy, according to ABC-7 archives.

Before he left the mobile home in Dona Ana County, he doused it with gasoline and set it on fire. The boy’s grandparents were in the home, but managed to get out safely.

Jaquez fled in a truck belonging to the grandparents and fled to Juarez with the boy.

He returned the boy the next day.

The victims lost their mobile home and all of their possession as a result of the fire, an estimated $31,000.

Jaquez pleaded guilty to arson, a second degree felony.

Jaquez was also convicted of of unlawful taking of a motor vehicle, a fourth degree felony.

The judge sentenced Jaquez to nine years prison and 18 months probation.

A restitution hearing for the loss of the family’s home and possessions will be scheduled at a later date. The victims will ask the court for $31,000 in restitution.