A reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for information about an arson fire at a Provo meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Sometime between 11 p.m. on Feb. 25 and 5:30 a.m. on Feb. 26, someone broke into the church at 667 N. 600 East, said Sgt. Nisha King of the Provo Police Department. The arsonist (or arsonists) set a fire in the chapel at the center of the building, which caused “thousands of dollars of damage.”
Firefighters were called to the church at about 5:30 a.m. on Feb. 26 and found the fire still smoldering. They extinguished what remained of the blaze, and there were no injuries. According to King, there are no suspects.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Provo Police Department, the Provo Fire Department, and the Utah State Fire Marshal are offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons who set the fire.
Anyone with information is asked to call the ATF hotline at 1-888-ATF-FIRE (1-888-283-3473) or the Provo Police Department at 801-852-6210. Information can also be emailed to ATFTips@atf.gov or relayed, through ATF’s website, atf.gov/contact/atftips. Tips can also be submitted anonymously to the Reportit app (available from Google Play or the Apple App store, or by visiting reportit.com).
“They’re hoping that maybe someone saw something suspicious — somebody out and about in that area,” King said.