JACKSON, Miss. (VINnews) — A 19-year-old Mississippi man has been charged in a superseding federal indictment with civil rights and arson offenses in connection with the burning of a synagogue and a Jewish nonprofit building in Jackson, authorities said.

Stephen Spencer Pittman, 19, of Madison, was charged Thursday in a three-count indictment related to the January fire at Beth Israel Congregation and the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life.

According to court documents, Pittman is accused of using gasoline to set fire to the religious building in the early morning hours of Jan. 10. The blaze caused extensive damage and rendered much of the property unusable for an indefinite period.

The indictment charges Pittman with arson of property used in interstate commerce, damaging or destroying religious real property because of its religious character, and using fire in the commission of a federal felony.

“The Department of Justice will not tolerate attacks on houses of worship,” Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said in a statement, adding that authorities would continue to investigate and prosecute attacks that threaten religious liberty.

U.S. Attorney J.E. Baxter Kruger for the Southern District of Mississippi called the fire a “heinous act of hate-fueled violence” and said the charges reflect a commitment to ensuring Americans can practice their faith without fear.

Beth Israel Congregation was founded in 1860 and has operated at its current Old Canton Road location since 1967. The synagogue was previously bombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967, according to its website. The Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life provides services to Jewish communities in 13 states and supports dozens of congregations with educational and rabbinical programs.

The FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Jackson Police Department and the Jackson Fire Department are investigating. Federal prosecutors in Mississippi and attorneys from the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division are handling the case.

If convicted, Pittman faces significant federal prison time.