Property Damage News 05/13/2023

(May 10) Motorist Crashes Into Church After Fleeing State Police At More Than 100 Mph | Plant CIty, FL

A Florida motorist is in custody after allegedly exceeding speeds of more than 100 mph while eluding state troopers before crashing into a church, authorities said.

Damian Alfonso Rios, 25, of Mulberry, was arrested on Sunday and charged with one count of reckless driving, one count of driving under the influence with property damage or personal injury, and one count of fleeing to elude a law enforcement officer, according to Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office online booking records.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a trooper saw Rios allegedly speeding on a street in Mulberry and drive through a stop sign at an intersection, WTSP-TV reported.

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(May 9) Second Topeka Church Vandalized In A Single Week, Cases Not Connected | Topeka, KS

A second church in the Capital City has been vandalized in a single week, however, the cases do not seem to be connected.

Pastor Rob Self of Lakeview Church of the Nazarene at 2835 SE Croco Rd. tells 13 NEWS that not long after a church bus in the Oakland neighborhood was vandalized, his facility was also targeted by ne’er-do-wells.

Self said the incident happened overnight between Thursday, May 4, and Friday, May 5. He has asked for the community’s help to identify individuals caught on the church’s security cameras.

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(May 9) Baltimore Police Investigating Hate Crime After Federal Hill Church’s LGBTQ+ Pride Flag Is Damaged | Baltimore, MD

Baltimore Police are investigating a destruction of property hate crime after a man scaled the wall of a Federal Hill church Sunday to rip an LGBTQ+ pride flag hanging from the building.

A witness told a church leader that a man stepped on a flowerpot and grabbed the flag to scale the wall of Light Street Presbyterian Church, where the flag hung 10 feet off the ground. After falling to the ground once, the man climbed the wall again and used a knife to rip the flag in half, police wrote in an incident report.

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(May 7) Church Fire In The Lake Houston Area | Huffman, TX

Firefighters arrived on scene within three minutes to find heavy fire coming from a church. Crews made an attack on the fire and conducted a primary search.

Once the fire was extinguished, they ensured there were no additional hotspots. HFD Arson investigators were requested to determine the cause and origin.

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(May 6) Colorado Man Pleads Guilty For Setting Fire To Church In Hate Crime Case | CO

A 22-year-old man has pled guilty in a Colorado federal court for setting fire to a church in Loveland in January.

Darion Ray Sexton entered a guilty plea on Thursday, admitting fault for setting fire to the Abiding Love Lutheran Church on Jan. 19.

Sexton was arrested and charged on Jan. 23 with causing damage to real property with fire or explosives.

As part of his plea, Sexton admitted to throwing two “Molotov cocktail” incendiary devices at the church, including one at the front door and the other at the basement.

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