A 23-year-old man pleaded not guilty Wednesday in connection with an arson fire that destroyed a historic church in South Los Angeles and left three firefighters injured.
Carlos Francisco Diaz is charged with two counts of arson of a structure and one count of arson of a property, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
The charges stem from the Sept. 11 fire that destroyed Victory Baptist Church, along with a fire set Sept. 4 on the same property.
Diaz -- who was arrested Sunday -- was ordered to remain jailed in lieu of $150,000 bail.
The blaze was reported at 2:22 a.m. Sept. 11 at the two-story church at 4802 S. McKinley Ave., according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.
"LAFD arson investigators and the multi-agency House of Worship Arson Task Force initiated an investigation into the fire's cause," according to a department statement.