The Navy sailor accused of starting the fire on the USS Bonhomme Richard last year has been identified.
The Naval Criminal Investigative Service sought a search warrant for the online accounts of Ryan Sawyer Mays, 20, in September 2020. However, the information was unsealed on Tuesday and reported by the Daily Beast.
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Cmdr. Sean Robertson, a spokesman for the U.S. 3rd Fleet, confirmed to the Washington Examiner that Mays was the individual who had “charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice were brought forth against” him last week “in response to evidence found during the criminal investigation.”
He faces charges of arson within a special maritime and territorial jurisdiction, use of fire to damage federal property, and making a false statement, according to the warrant.
The Navy decommissioned the amphibious assault ship that burned for days in San Diego Harbor beginning on July 12, 2020. Officials assessed that it would cost $3 billion and take up to seven years to restore the 22-year-old ship.
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Seaman Kenji Velasco, who was on board when the fire was set, told investigators that he saw a “light-skin male” wearing clean coveralls and carrying a silver bucket descend into the area where the fire started. He originally said he didn’t recognize the person, but he later said he was “fairly sure” and “90% sure” it was Mays.
Sixty-three personnel, including 40 sailors and 23 civilians, were treated for minor injuries, including heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation related to the fire and the attempts to quell the flames.
