LOS ANGELES : Reward in Killing of Pastor, 81, Increases to $50,000
The reward grew to $50,000 Wednesday for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the killer of an 81-year-old minister and grandmother in her Mid-City Los Angeles apartment.
The Los Angeles City Council offered $25,000 Tuesday in hopes of helping police solve the killing of Blanche Thomas, pastor of Mt. Zion Churches United Parish.
Television evangelist Gene Scott offered to double the amount Wednesday, and the council accepted his donation.
“He’s probably seen the coverage, and because she’s a lady of the cloth, he made the donation,” said Roger Galloway, press secretary to Councilman Nate Holden, who proposed the initial reward.
Thomas, who was active in charitable causes in her neighborhood, was found dead in her South La Brea Avenue apartment on July 25. She had been bound, gagged and sexually assaulted. Authorities have not disclosed the exact cause of her death.
Some items were stolen from the home, but investigators do not believe that robbery was the primary motive for the attack.
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