San Diego

The man accused of firebombing a North Park sports bar appeared in court Friday with his hands heavily bandaged and burn medication on his face to plead innocent to five arson-related charges.

Municipal Court Judge Linda Boelhauf Quinn set bail at $150,000 for Nader Hanna, 22, of San Diego, who is accused of Monday’s torching of Tuba Man’s Grandslam.

The charges against Hanna, whose father owns the property where the bar is located, include attempted arson in connection with a similar attack last summer that caused minor damage.

“As perhaps Mr. Hanna now knows, arson can be a dangerous crime to commit, but what makes this one so serious is that he did the same thing last July 1,” Deputy Dist. Atty. Dan Lamborn said.

“We finally caught up with him through some cronies of him who gave us the information,” he said.

The bar, which was gutted in the pre-dawn blaze, was opened in 1976 by Jim Eakle, who gained local prominence as the tuba-playing leader of a ragtime band that frequently entertained fans at Padres baseball games a decade ago.

Hanna, the son of an Iraqi businessman and a U.S. resident for 7 years, was arrested Wednesday at UC San Diego Medical Center’s burn unit, where he went for treatment.

Authorities said he had been admitted to the county’s mental health facility on Monday, and officials there took him to the hospital.

Quinn rejected defense attorney William Milloy’s request to set bail at $50,000 so the defendant’s family could obtain his release and get psychiatric care for him sooner.

“Given all the circumstances we know at this point, I think $150,000 is appropriate,” Quinn said.

A bail review hearing was scheduled for Wednesday, and a preliminary hearing on Feb. 23.