2 Arrested in Texas Church Fires

Two arrests have been made in a string of deliberately set church fires in east Texas, a fire official said Sunday.

Neal Franklin, fire chief of Tyler, Texas, would not divulge further details. A news conference was scheduled for later Sunday afternoon.

Ten church fires have happened in east Texas this year. Nine of them have been ruled arson.

No clear theme links the fires, which have struck churches of different denominations, including Baptist, Methodist and Church of Christ Scientist, at different times of the day and on different days of the week, authorities have said. While the churches are in small towns, not all of them are in remote locations.

AP
A map shows the sites of several recent church fires in East Texas. Two men were arrested and charged Sunday in connection with the blazes, authorities said.
Investigators are not sure whether an 11th church fire, also ruled arson, in Temple, Texas, is related to the others, said Tom Crowley, spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Temple is about 150 miles from the area where the other blazes have been concentrated, in an area east of Dallas, Texas.

The ATF on February 12 issued sketches of three people sought in the fires. See Chick's BAD BOB.