Motel owner convicted

HEBER CITY — A Midvale man accused of setting fire to his own motel and claiming it was a hate crime has been found guilty.

Mazhar Tabesh, 40, a Muslim who in 1981 moved to the United States from Pakistan and obtained citizenship in 1993, was charged with first-degree-felony aggravated arson in September 2002, two months after the Alpine Lodge at 100 North and Main Street in Heber City caught fire, causing about $100,000 in damage.

After deliberating for five hours, the jury returned the verdict just before 10 p.m. Thursday.

Tabesh testified before 4th District Judge Donald J. Eyre in Heber City on Thursday, repeatedly replying "absolutely not" when asked whether he started the fire or had any role in it.

Tabesh testified that a man entered the motel office off the street that day and asked for a room. He filled out a registration slip illegibly — a fact that prosecutors called suspicious. But Tabesh said it was not unusual for people to fill out slips hastily and illegibly.

The man, whom Tabesh described as 25 to 30 years old, paid cash and went to his room, Tabesh testified.

But prosecutors contended Tabesh hoped to obtain insurance money by "jumping on the Sept. 11 bandwagon," starting the blaze with the idea that investigators would blame animosity against Muslims and look beyond Tabesh for suspects.

At first it worked, prosecutor Thomas Lowe said in closing arguments. Officers originally believed the fire was a hate crime, Lowe said. The Heber community rallied to Tabesh's aid, sending flowers, hosting a benefit concert and opening a bank account for donations. Residents raised nearly $1,400.

But as the investigation progressed, the evidence didn't bear Tabesh's story out, Lowe said.

During the trial, which started Monday, the four-man, four-woman jury heard testimony on fingerprints found on receipts, a food wrapper and other items that survived the fire. They also heard about changes Tabesh made to his insurance policy just weeks before the fire.

Other witnesses talked of the motel's financial viability.

Tabesh said he bought the hotel with his wife's parents, agreeing to help run it until his wife's brothers obtained visas and came to Utah to take his place. He would maintain partial ownership after his brothers-in-law arrived. But the brothers-in-law have not been able to get visas yet as post-Sept. 11 policy has limited immigration from Pakistan.