A Fridley nursing home resident is facing multiple felony charges after authorities say he intentionally set fires inside the facility, endangered immobile residents and assaulted a deputy.

According to a criminal complaint, the incident occurred on Dec. 8, 2025, at a nursing home on East River Road in Fridley.

Law enforcement and fire rescue were dispatched after reports that a male resident was actively throwing burning items into the hallway from his room.

When officers arrived, they found the hallway filled with thick black smoke and heard residents yelling for help. Officers immediately began evacuating elderly and immobile residents while working to control the fire. They learned the suspect, 27-year-old Joel Gualberto Villota-Molina, was barricaded inside his room.