CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — He ran for mayor of Corpus Christi in 2020, and now John Medina is behind bars for arson.
Medina is accused of setting fire to his own home back on election day, Nov. 3, 2020. He was arrested Tuesday in the driveway of his home carrying nearly $50,000 in cash.
On Wednesday, 3News acquired an arrest affidavit detailing the arson investigation that led to Medina's arrest.
Back on election day of 2020, Medina stood in front of his home in the 4900 block of Mokry Drive and spoke with 3News about who may have set fire to his home.
It was big news because he was a candidate in the Corpus Christi mayoral race and the man behind the Facebook page Corpus Christi News Now.
"I am the founder of CCNN and I’m actually being sued by a local dentist and Joe McComb‘s ally, and I put several articles out, and who knows," Medina told 3News on the morning of election day.
"It’s crazy what’s happening here in Corpus Christi. A lot of corruption, and I just happen to be in it. In all this mess that’s going on.”
Now, after three months of investigating the case, the Corpus Christi Police Department along with the Texas Rangers and the Corpus Christi Fire Department believe that Medina was responsible for setting fire to his own house.
Medina's arrest affidavit written up by the fire department's arson investigator is a four-page document detailing the case against the former candidate.
According to the affidavit, one of the first pieces of evidence the document covers is that the state fire marshal’s canine unit alerted three times on an ignitable liquid substance inside Medina’s house.
The investigation also points out that no one was home at the time of the fire and that the residence was secured.
A week after the fire, 3News spoke with CCFD Chief Robert Rocha about the status of the case and what else investigators needed to do with the time.
"We still have people we are going to interview, and so this for sure isn’t finished," Rocha said.
The document also discloses that Medina‘s wife made a written statement telling investigators that a gun case, along with two vacuum cleaners and a toaster oven, were all missing after the fire. She also said her husband had told her that they had been destroyed by water, but then later admitted to her that he still had the items.
According to the document, investigators also used Google video to show Medina’s vehicle leaving his home after 6 a.m. that morning, just minutes before the fire began to spread.
The affidavit goes on to say there was an audio recording by Medina’s daughter talking about a fish tank and a lot of rifles that were normally kept inside of the home but were missing after the fire.
The affidavit also details various witness statements, including one from a neighbor who said he saw the rear door of Medina's home left open with smoke coming through the door before the fire department arrived.
As for the flammable liquid sniffed out by the canine, the affidavit states a laboratory report showed that it appeared to be either charcoal starter or some type of paint thinner.
According to the affidavit, Medina made a statement saying that he felt he was being framed and knows it looks like he did it.
He also told investigators he believes someone must have been in his residence hiding out overnight, and then set the fire after they saw him leave on election day.
The report does mention that forcible entry was noted to the home’s southwest ground floor entry door leading to the rear den and upper level stairway.
Medina was released on a $75,000 bond tonight.
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