Bobby Salazar’s Fresno Arson Case and Insurance Fraud

The Bobby Salazar Fresno arson case is a federal prosecution in the Eastern District of California accusing longtime Fresno restaurateur Robert “Bobby” Salazar of hiring the president of a local motorcycle club to set fire to his own vacant restaurant on North Blackstone Avenue in April 2024 and then collecting nearly $1 million in insurance money. A federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment in October 2025 charging arson, mail fraud, and a firearms offense. Salazar has pleaded not guilty, is free on a $1 million bond, and is scheduled for trial on April 6 following a June 3, 2026 status hearing.

What Prosecutors Say Happened

Federal prosecutors allege Salazar paid $10,000 to Thomas Qualls, president of the Screamin’ Demons Motorcycle Club in Sanger, and a second person, Shylo Badiali, to burn down the vacant Bobby Salazar’s Mexican Restaurant at 2839 North Blackstone Avenue. The fire broke out around 1:30 a.m. on April 2, 2024. Investigators found extensive interior damage and recovered partially burned gas cans at the scene, which led them to classify the blaze as arson.¹

The restaurant had been struggling and closed in January 2024. Court records show Salazar increased the property’s insurance coverage by $102,000 roughly a month before the closure.² After the fire, prosecutors say, he filed a claim falsely stating he had no involvement and received a payout of at least $980,739 from The Hartford.¹ According to the indictment, Salazar used the proceeds to make payments on a San Francisco Bay Area condominium, pay owed taxes, and retire a $500,000 loan he had taken out in February 2024 using the restaurant as collateral.³

The Six Federal Charges

Salazar was first arrested on August 26, 2025, on a two-count complaint alleging arson of commercial property and arson in furtherance of a felony. A third charge, possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, was added the following day after agents searched his Clovis home and his Tower District bar, Lucy’s Lounge. Agents seized five firearms, including a privately manufactured AR pistol and a stolen Sig Sauer handgun found in a safe at Lucy’s Lounge; three of the four guns at his home were in a hidden closet behind a shelf, along with ammunition and a high-capacity magazine.⁴

On October 23, 2025, a federal grand jury returned a six-count indictment: two counts of arson, four counts of mail fraud tied to insurance settlement checks sent through the mail, and the firearms count.³ If convicted on all counts, the statutory exposure is substantial:

Commercial arson carries a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison.
Arson in furtherance of a felony carries a mandatory 10-year sentence that must run consecutively to the arson charge.
Each mail fraud count carries up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The firearms possession count carries up to five years in prison.

The prosecution is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert L. Veneman-Hughes and Brittany M. Gunter, with the investigation led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Fresno Fire Department.¹

Co-Defendants

Thomas Martin Qualls, 39, of Sanger, is identified in the case as the president of the Fresno chapter of the Screamin’ Demons Motorcycle Club. He was arrested on May 2, 2024, after the Multi-Agency Gang Consortium served a search warrant at the club’s Sanger clubhouse, where investigators recovered firearms, more than 2,300 rounds of ammunition, and other items.⁵ A convicted felon, Qualls has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody at the Fresno County Jail.

Shylo Badiali, indicted alongside Salazar and Qualls in October 2025 on arson charges, was released on pretrial conditions and then tested positive for methamphetamine in November 2025 and alcohol in December 2025, according to a petition filed by U.S. Pretrial Services. On January 5, 2026, she allegedly tampered with her ankle monitor, and the next day she failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing. U.S. Magistrate Judge Erica P. Grosjean issued a bench warrant, and she is being sought by the U.S. Marshals.⁶ Legal analysts have said her unavailability could affect the trial timing for all defendants.⁷

Where the Case Stands

Salazar posted a $1 million property bond and was released from custody in late September 2025.⁸ He is now represented by private counsel: Atlanta attorney Murdoch Walker II of Lowther Walker, his colleague Serguel Mawuko Akiti, and Irvine attorney Michael Khouri, after the court relieved his federal public defender.⁹

Salazar pleaded not guilty to all six counts at a hearing on November 17, 2025.¹⁰ A hearing originally set for January 21, 2026, was pushed to June 3, 2026, by agreement of the parties to allow for evidence review and possible plea negotiations.⁶ U.S. Magistrate Judge Stanley Boone later set trial for April 6, with prosecutors estimating a two-week trial. Assistant U.S. Attorney Veneman-Hughes said he expected to offer plea deals to all three defendants.¹¹ All three have maintained not-guilty pleas.

A Prior Insurance Fraud Conviction

This is not Salazar’s first insurance fraud case. In 1997, he pleaded no contest to felony insurance fraud and possession of stolen property after arranging to have his own pickup truck stolen. He left the keys in the vehicle, had someone take it, then reported it stolen and filed a claim. He was sentenced to one year in a work-furlough program and 600 hours of community service. Prosecutor Veneman-Hughes said during current proceedings that the earlier conviction may later have been reduced to a misdemeanor, though that could not be confirmed.¹²

Impact on the Restaurants

The charges disrupted the Bobby Salazar’s franchise network. At the Washington Square shopping center location, franchisee Suzie Riofrio, who had operated the restaurant for 24 years, terminated her franchise agreement and rebranded as Mama Iguana’s. Riofrio said business dropped after the arrest and that the location faced heavy negative attention on social media, forcing her to publicly clarify that her restaurant was independently owned.¹³

Salazar’s Tower District restaurant reopened after a brief closure on the day of his arrest and has continued to operate. Fresno Councilmember Annalisa Perea called the restaurant “a huge contributor to our local economy” and said its closure would be “devastating to not just the Tower District but to the community as a whole.”¹⁴

A Second Fire at the Same Building

In late May 2026, a second fire struck the vacant Blackstone Avenue building. Fresno Fire crews responded shortly after 12:30 a.m. and found flames on the north side of the boarded-up structure, which caused a partial collapse and damaged a nearby power pole. No one was inside, power had already been disconnected, and no injuries were reported.¹⁵ The cause remains under investigation, and no additional charges have been filed in connection with the second fire.

1
U.S. Department of Justice. Fresno Restaurant Operator Charged With Hiring Gang Member To Set Fire to Restaurant
2
The Fresno Bee. Second Fire Hits Vacant Bobby Salazar’s on Blackstone
3
GV Wire. Mail Fraud Charges Added to Bobby Salazar’s Arson Case
4
GV Wire. Feds Add Third Charge for Bobby Salazar; Restaurant Owner Denies Them All in Court
5
GV Wire. Fresno Detectives Arrest Motorcycle Club Leader on Arson, Gun Charges
6
GV Wire. Fugitive Sought Again in Bobby Salazar’s Restaurant Arson Case
7
ABC30. Warrant for Arrest of Woman Accused in Bobby Salazar Arson Case
8
The Fresno Bee. Bobby Salazar Posts Bond, Hires Private Attorney
9
GV Wire. Who Are the New Attorneys for Accused Arsonist Bobby Salazar
10
Your Central Valley. Bobby Salazar Returns to Fresno’s Federal Court With a New Lawyer
11
The Fresno Bee. Bobby Salazar Arson Trial Date Set
12
The Fresno Bee. Bobby Salazar’s Prior Conviction
13
The Fresno Bee. Bobby Salazar’s Franchise Rebrands to Mama Iguana’s
14
KMPH. Bobby Salazar’s Legal Case Raises Questions About Tower District Restaurant
15
ABC30. Fire Damages Former Bobby Salazar’s Restaurant in Central Fresno