Man Arrested in Burning of Church in Ontario
A man police said was carrying a satanic book was arrested early Tuesday on suspicion of setting fire to a church.
Officers arrested Justin Michael Crawford, 21, of Ontario, as he stood in front of the burning church shortly after midnight. He was wearing black clothing and carrying what Ontario police spokesman Michael Macias called a satanic bible.
The church, World Life Ministry of the Inland Empire, suffered an estimated $250,000 in damage, Ontario Fire Capt. Floyd Clark said.
Police believe Crawford, a former church member, entered the church by throwing a rock through a glass door about midnight. Police were summoned by a burglar alarm.
Crawford denied setting the fire and told police he was just “seeing what was happening,” Macias said. He faces charges of terrorism and arson, both felonies, and interference with the exercise of civil rights by threats to damage property.
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