Left: Anthony Cadena and Leslie Morgan's nursery at their California home, which was allegedly set on fire by a group of girls who had been bullying their daughter, cops say (GoFundMe). Right, top and bottom: Security video allegedly shows two teen girls targeting Anthony Cadena and Leslie Morgan's home in the Sacramento suburb of Citrus Heights (KGO/YouTube).
Two California teens went to the house of a girl they had been bullying and threw a firework into the home, setting a baby nursery ablaze less than two weeks before the girl's family was due to bring home a new child, the family says.
"They had everything ready," a GoFundMe says about parents Anthony Cadena and Leslie Morgan, who told local CBS affiliate KOVR that the girls responsible for the firework attack had been bullying and trying to fight their daughter.
"The nursery was set up, and they were excited to bring baby Noah home," the online fundraiser explains. "Everything they had prepared for their newborn was destroyed."
The family's home, located in the 7700 block of Bierston Street in the Sacramento suburb of Citrus Heights, was targeted on June 30. The girls, who are underage, were allegedly caught on security video lighting a "firecracker" and tossing it into the residence, according to the family.
Cadena was the only person home at the time. He was playing video games and reported seeing smoke coming from the nursery after Morgan called him and told him she spotted the fire on their home's security cameras.
"The whole baby's room is torched," Cadena told local ABC affiliate KXTV. "It's done… all the rooms in the house are covered in soot… everything."
"It was devastating," Morgan told KOVR. "I couldn't imagine anyone wanting to do something like that. It was very shocking to me."
The teens involved are reportedly facing charges of arson, aggravated arson, burglary and conspiracy, along with a third teen who was allegedly part of the firework attack.
"Seeing someone actually do that to someone's house… they saw it was a baby room… just to see that these girls just don't care about anything… it's unbelievable, honestly, that they would do something like that," Morgan said. "Our family forgives these girls because that's what we do. We're not holding a grudge against them. I do hope that something happens to change their perspective. We just hope they learn their lesson from this."