The 51-year-old founder of a San Jose custom t-shirt and print business is dead after a Sunday morning fire ripped through his business’ building, and the arson suspect in custody is an unhoused woman with a previous arson conviction.
The Bay Area News Group has the news of a Sunday morning fire in San Jose’s Roosevelt Park neighborhood that firefighters responded to at about 3:55 am. The fire completely consumed a two-story building on North 27th Street near East Saint James Street, and officials were quick to conclude the cause was arson. But more urgently, they were informed that the founder of the business that was housed in that building was trapped inside during the fire.
The incident is still ongoing as personnel utilize aerial master streams in attempt to fully extinguish the fire while maintaining a safe distance from potential building collapse. Crews successfully protected the adjacent buildings and residential structures. pic.twitter.com/G1pHcem1Gh
— San José Fire Dept. (@SJFD) July 13, 2025
That unfortunately turned out to be true, as now KTVU reports that the founder of the t-shirt and custom printing company Branding Out, 51-year-old founder Chris Tran, was killed in the blaze. Tributes to Tran on social media say "we are incredibly lucky to have made soooo many memories with him, but I’m beyond heartbroken we won’t be making new ones. He was everyone’s best friend.”
But KTVU also reports that an unhoused woman has been arrested for arson in this incident. 35-year-old Yessenia Estrada was apparently known as something of a repeat troublemaker in the neighborhood, and she’s been charged with involuntary manslaughter and arson.
"This is what's called involuntary manslaughter. It's something that happens when somebody does something that's extremely dangerous to human life but didn't intend to kill someone," Santa Clara County deputy district attorney Pablo Wudka-Robles explained to KTVU. "She either knew or should have known what she was doing here was extremely dangerous."
KTVU notes that Estrada had previously been found guilty of misdemeanor arson just last year, and that “some business owners near the scene said they had seen Estrada setting fires before.”
“The community is outraged. I'm outraged,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said in a statement to KTVU. “This suspect is well-known to our police officers. She has had multiple court appearances for misdemeanors and felonies in the last two years and she's been returned to the streets by the court system.”
“Now a beloved small business owner has been killed,” he added. “My heart breaks for Chris and his family."
Estrada is scheduled to be arraigned Friday at 1:30 pm at Santa Clara County Superior Court, though is currently on a psychiatric hold at an undisclosed San Jose hospital.
Related: SFPD Arrests Alleged Arsonist Who May Be Linked to Playground Arson Cases [SFist]
Image: @SJFD via Twitter
