Santa Cruz Police on Friday announced the arrest of a man suspected in torching Neighbor’s Pub in downtown Santa Cruz on Dec. 10.
James Eason, 45—who is currently in custody at the County Jail for an unrelated crime—is being held without bail.
He will be re-booked for the charges of vandalism, hate crime and arson in connection with the incident, police said.
The newly-opened Neighbor’s Pub at 711 Pacific Ave. is described on the business’ website as “Irish pub meets gay bar meets cafe.”
On Dec. 10, at around 3am, officers were dispatched to The Neighbors Pub where the owner of the bar discovered that someone had etched an offensive message into the glass of the front doors.
Eason also allegedly attempted to set the area around the front doors on fire. There was evidence of burnt material around the doorway and a section of the wall was scorched, police said. The burnt materials were collected as evidence.
SCPD officers compared body camera footage from an earlier unrelated arrest earlier in the week with security camera images from the incident. Investigators learned Eason was responsible for the incident.
Eason is currently being held in the county jail for a separate matter but will be re-booked on charges related to the vandalism, hate crime and arson.
The arrest is not Eason’s first.
According to court records, he was placed on two years probation in June for felony burglary.
In November 2023, he was sentenced to 180 days in jail for misdemeanor vandalism and possession of a controlled substance, and was released after serving 19 days, and in April of that year he was given a suspended sentence of 60 days for burglary.
Also in 2023, Eason was arrested for a separate burglary of an inhabited dwelling, for which he was given a 60-day suspended sentence.
He has also been arrested for illegally possessing ammunition, trespassing, making terroristic threats and assault.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Rock at er***@sa*********.gov.
