North Carolina Church Fire Labeled As Arson, Possible Hate Crime

A fire at a predominantly black church in Charlotte, North Carolina, is being considered arson, and could possibly be labeled as a hate crime as well.

According to the Associated Press, a fire broke out at the Briar Creek Road Baptist Church at about 1 a.m. on Wednesday. The church was vacant at the time of the fire, and a resident of a nearby apartment complex phoned 911 to make the report.

David Williams, a senior investigator for the Charlotte Fire Department, said arson is the cause for the fire, but he didn’t reveal exactly how the department reached that conclusion.

“We completed our work on the scene and determined this was intentionally set.”

Two firefighters were treated for heat-related injuries, and the fire is reported to have caused $250,000 worth of damages to the church. Mannix Kinsey, the church’s pastor, told WBTV that he thought the fire would be a lot worse.

“When I got here, I was even amazed to see that the flames were so high. I am thinking, ‘Oh my goodness, this church is going to be destroyed.’ But thank God the damage that was done wasn’t as bad as we thought it could be.”

While the fire is being considered arson, there’s also discussion about it being a possible hate crime, since the church’s congregation is predominantly black. Mannix said he is hoping this isn’t a hate crime.

“We are still talking about this same issue and this is 2015. We all have to consider what else we need to do to actually be able to work together.”

One neighbor, Sam Triantis, doesn’t believe the church fire was a hate crime.

“There’s no hate. Here we have 200 nationalities in this neighborhood and we get along just fine.”

It’s undetermined how many people were involved in the arson, but Mannix noted that the people of the church are willing to forgive the suspect or suspects for what has been done.

“Honestly I can speak for this church. That we’ve already forgiven them and we want to move forward. And we are hoping this is an opportunity for Christ to show himself in their hearts.”

This arson case comes a week after the Inquisitr reported that Dylann Storm Roof opened fire in a black church in Charleston, South Carolina, killing nine people before later being captured by police. Since then, there has been outrage over usage of the Confederate flag, with which Roof was pictured prior to the shooting.

Do you feel the church arson was a hate crime?

[Image via Twitter]