B.C. man sentenced after arson at home of Ukrainian priest

CBC News

· Posted: Jun 11, 2025 8:48 PM EDT | Last Updated: 7 hours ago

A Nanaimo, B.C., antheral has been sentenced to 3 and a fractional years successful situation aft an arson onslaught astatine an Ukrainian priest's location successful Victoria.

The occurrence successful the 1100-block of Caledonia Avenue connected April 20, 2022, threatened the household of Father Yuriy Vyshnevskyy, the parish clergyman astatine the Ukrainian Catholic Church of St. Nicholas, located adjacent door.

Now, Walter (Theo) Machinski has been sentenced aft pleading blameworthy to 1 number of arson with disregard for quality life.

He was known to the family, Victoria constabulary said, but the incidental was "not motivated by hatred towards an identifiable group." 

Machinski was arrested successful April 2023, according to police, who accidental the location targeted by the arson onslaught remains uninhabitable to this day.

"The bravery of the household and the swift effect of our officers and Victoria firefighters prevented a tragedy," work a connection from Victoria acting lawman main Michael Brown.

Three girls had to beryllium lowered by their parent retired of the second-floor model to their begetter and 2 bystanders waiting below, Dan Atkinson, acting main of the Victoria Fire Department said astatine the time.

The parent past had to beryllium rescued by firefighters with the assistance of a ladder.

Vyshnevskyy said successful April 2022 that his woman woke up astir 1 a.m. PT connected the nighttime of the occurrence aft proceeding noises.

She assumed it was 1 of her children walking astir the house, past realized the sounds were coming from the beforehand porch.

"The adjacent happening she heard was the dependable of ... emptying the vessel and the odor of gasoline," helium said. "Someone was pouring [it] wrong the location done the message slot."

"She yelled, she called maine and said, 'Yuriy, get up, someone's pouring this into the house' ... Up until that point, determination was nary fire."

But astir instantly aft helium was alerted to the gasoline, Vyshnevskyy said, idiosyncratic started a occurrence which dispersed "really quickly."

By the clip helium got downstairs, the beforehand country was already ablaze. As fume filled the house, helium said helium had to wantonness his plans to enactment retired the occurrence himself, and past escaped done the backmost door.

Outside, helium saw his woman and children done the upstairs window, gasping for air.

His neighbour past helped promote the stranded children to leap — their lone harmless mode retired of the house.

"They trusted america and and they were brave," Vyshnevskyy said.

Following the fire, Atkinson praised the parents for their speedy thinking.

"It's truly an unthinkable communicative and a testament to some the parents of the children to guarantee their information by closing doors down them to assistance forestall accelerated occurrence spread into the areas wherever they were," helium said.

"It surely could person been overmuch worse."