By Carol Robinson

Xiaoqin Yan of China

A 30-year-old Auburn woman has been sentenced to prison for setting fire to First Baptist Church in Montgomery in 2021.

Xiaoqin Yan is a citizen of China who was in the U.S. on a student visa. Her visa was revoked after her arrest.

A federal judge sentenced Yan to more than eight years in prison, according to a Monday announcement by Middle District of Alabama Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Ross.

Yan was convicted in 2023 of arson and illegal possession of a firearm.

According to charging documents against Yan, she used an “open flame to ignite an ignitable liquid,” on Sept. 30, 2021, causing $25,000 in damage to the church on Perry Street.

According to court records and evidence presented at Yan’s June 2023 trial, Yan entered the downtown Montgomery church and ignited multiple fires inside the building.

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Fire damaged pews are shown in the main sanctuary at First Baptist Church in downtown Montgomery, Ala., on Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021. Fires that appeared to have been set intentionally destroyed an office and caused damage in the more than century-old First Baptist Church of Montgomery, Rev. Mark L. Bethea, said Thursday. (Jake Crandall/The Montgomery Advertiser via AP)AP

Yan was captured on surveillance video.

The Montgomery Fire Department was able to extinguish the blaze, but only after the church sustained significant damage.

Evidence at the trial showed that Yan had multiple encounters with church staff prior to September 30 and had exhibited odd behavior.

When Yan was arrested Oct. 4, 2021, agents found items identical to those seen on church surveillance videos, as well as clothing matching the type worn by Yan when setting the fires.

Officers also found a handgun.

At the time of the arson and her arrest, authorities said, Yan had overstayed her non-immigrant visa and, therefore, could not lawfully possess a firearm.

Multiple agencies assisted in the investigation.

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