LANCASTER – A registered arsonist convicted of trying to set a woman’s car on fire outside a Lancaster motel was sentenced Thursday to 16 years to life in state prison, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Edmund Crigler Pemberton — who admitted he had been convicted of arson in 2001 and 2014 — was found guilty July 26 of two felony counts of attempting to burn property and one misdemeanor count of vandalism with under $400 damage.
Pemberton, 56, tried to burn a woman’s car on Sept. 9, 2015, because he mistakenly believed she had stolen his wallet, according to evidence presented at his trial.
A motel security guard was able to intervene and put out the fire, Deputy District Attorney Ashley Gadson-Andrews said.
Pemberton was on parole in the 2014 arson case at the time, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
He was taken into custody Sept. 9, 2015, by Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and has remained jailed since then.
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