Photo courtesy Altoona Police Department Ian Ansumana Jabateh, 23, of Clifton Heights faces charges for allegedly throwing a Molotov cocktail at a railcar doused in gasoline. The incident occurred Saturday morning at the Railroaders Memorial Museum, Altoona.

A Clifton Heights man is behind bars in Blair County after allegedly throwing a Molotov cocktail at a railcar doused in gasoline.

Ian Ansumana Jabateh, 23, was arraigned Saturday afternoon before Magisterial District Judge Matthew Dunio on felony counts of arson of a historic resource – explosion, risking a catastrophe and criminal attempt – criminal mischief intentionally damaging property, along with misdemeanor charges of criminal mischief, institutional vandalism, recklessly endangering another person and DUI.

Bail was set at $500,000 and Jabateh was remanded to the Blair County Prison. His preliminary hearing is set for May 21 before Magisterial District Judge Benjamin F. Jones.

According to Altoona police, Jabateh was spotted about 6:17 a.m. Saturday in the area of Station Medical Center on Ninth Avenue where he was setting things on fire and igniting Molotov cocktails.

When police arrived, Jabateh was standing near the driver’s side door of his vehicle and throwing rocks at the windows of the Railroaders Memorial Museum. Jabateh complied with officers’ orders and was taken into custody. At that time, police determined he was intoxicated.

Through the investigation, police learned that Jabateh set a pair of shoes on fire on the 1500 block of Ninth Avenue before driving erratically in the Station Mall McDonald’s drive thru. While he was in the drive thru, he attempted to light a paper towel on fire and insert it into a glass bottle but was unsuccessful.

After exiting the drive thru, police said Jabateh drove east through the parking lot until he reached the Harry Bennett Memorial Roundhouse where he threw a Molotov cocktail at a counterweight rail car he doused in gasoline.

Jabateh then got back into his vehicle, drove onto a curb, and exited the vehicle to throw rocks at the museum.

Police credited a bystander for extinguishing multiple small fires before they grew out of control.

Jabateh’s vehicle was seized from the scene so a search warrant could be executed. Multiple pieces of evidence were collected from each crime scene, police reported.