The Chester County District Attorney’s Office announced that Agustin Cisneros-Bedolla, 42, of West Grove, waived his preliminary hearing. 

Cisneros-Bedolla was arrested in early March after setting a business on fire while people were inside the building. Cisneros-Bedolla was charged with attempted homicide, aggravated arson, robbery, possession of weapons of mass destruction, and other related offenses. 

Magisterial District Judge Matthew Seavey arraigned the defendant on March 2 and set a cash bail of $2,000,000. 

Cisneros-Bedolla is currently held at Chester County Prison. Now that he has waived his preliminary hearing, his case will be listed before a judge at the Chester County Court of Common Pleas.

The criminal complaint filed by the Pennsylvania State Police said that on March 1, Cisneros-Bedolla entered Squire’s Pantry, located on Gap Newport Pike in London Grove Township, where he purchased a lighter and gum. After the purchase, he left the business, but then quickly returned and demanded the keys to a vehicle parked outside. The defendant was holding a Molotov cocktail—in this case, a glass bottle with a flammable fluid and a cloth sticking out of the top—and threatened to light it on fire. 

After he obtained a set of spare keys, Cisneros-Bedolla lit the cloth, threw the glass bottle in the direction of the employees, and fled. The store was quickly engulfed in flames. When the spare keys malfunctioned, Cisneros-Bedolla also attempted to carjack a bystander’s vehicle with a passenger inside. Eventually, he fled from the scene on foot. Troopers conducted a neighborhood canvas and learned from a witness that, shortly before the incident, the defendant was observed in possession of gas canisters. 

On March 2, a member of the public brought Cisneros-Bedolla to the Pennsylvania State Police Troop J Avondale Barracks where he was taken into custody. 

The Pennsylvania State Police Troop J Avondale Barracks is the lead investigating agency and received assistance from the Southern Chester County Regional Police Department. Chief Deputy District Attorney Michelle Frei and Assistant District Attorney Peter Johnsen are the assigned prosecutors. 

Anyone with information related to this investigation is encouraged to contact the Pennsylvania State Police at 610-268-2022.