Man accused of setting fire to middle Georgia church

BYRON, Ga. — Georgia officials are investigating after they say a man set a church on fire.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Tuesday night, a Byron police officer smelled and spotted smoke near Main Street. The smoke came from the Byron United Methodist Church on West Heritage Drive.

According to the police department, the cause of the fire was determined to be arson.

TRENDING STORIES:

• Highly anticipated Atlanta Dream, Indiana Fever rematch to feature first WNBA halftime performance
• Douglasville man raises $35,000 in 24 hours for stranger after a simple act of kindness
• 8 arrested, 5 wanted for using CashApp to get $1 million worth of contraband into Fulton County Jail

Byron investigators began working with the Georiga State Fire Marshal, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the US Alcohol Tobacco & Firearms.

During the investigation, authorities identified this suspect as, Luke Westfield. Westfield was arrested and booked into the Columbia County Jail.

The church shared on Facebook that they will have a church service on Sunday and to pray for those who have harmed them.

[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]

Although the investigation is still ongoing, the Byron Police Department said no additional information will be released at this time.

Anyone with information can call the BPD at 478-956-2493.

IN OTHER NEWS:

Man dies in crash after being thrown from car in DeKalb County

©2024 Cox Media Group