Palmerston North’s Catholic Cathedral of the Holy Spirit reopened over the weekend after an arson attack in April closed it for several months. The fire, lit inside the day chapel, caused minor damage and nobody was hurt. “It was out within 15 minutes,” Father Joe Grayland said at the time. “The fire brigade inspector said Read more
A former Christchurch man jailed in 2016 for arson that caused $2.3 million damage to a church there has admitted breaching parole in Gisborne. Cheyenne Destiny Jade Reed, 38 burned down St Margaret’s Presbyterian Church in Farrington Ave, Bishopdale, during May 2016. Read more
Jacob Lowenstein was sentenced to six years and nine months in prison after he burned down two Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints buildings. His mother Kath Payne, said her son had a “strong mind “He’s not a mindless church-burning thug. He had a really good sized bout of depression and he made some really stupid choices in Read more
Jacob Lowenstein’s arsons of two churches was “a determined attempt to make a statement against religion”, said the judge who jailed the 28-year-old for six years nine months. Judge Saunders said Lowenstein saw his actions as a way of getting back at his father for his strict religious upbringing. He had tried to reach out Read more
A liquid accelerant was mostly likely used to start a fire that damaged a historic Mt Eden church hall beyond repair, an investigation has concluded. A report by Fire and Emergency NZ, released to the Herald on Sunday under the Official Information Act, has classified the fire as “incendiary”. “The cause of this fire is Read more
A fire has destroyed two buildings at Père Guéneau Vocational High School at Bourail in New Caledonia just one week after the beginning of the school year. It is the fourth fire at the Catholic school in the past five years. The police are investigating the cause of the fire – arson is suspected. One Read more
Two 19-year-old women have been arrested following the fire that tore through Sacred Heart Girls’ College in Hamilton on Friday night. The pair will appear in Hamilton District Court on Wednesday charged with arson. Fireworks were found at the scene of the fire on Saturday. Continue reading Read about the fire
Judge Max Courtney has ruled there was insufficient evidence to prove Donna Joy Esma Mischeski was involved in a fire which destroyed St Philomena’s Church in New Plymouth on January 6, 2014. He also ruled there was not enough evidence to suggest the fire had been started deliberately in the first place. After the ruling, Read more
Orthodox rabbis and the speaker of Israel’s parliament have raised thousands of dollars to help repair a famous Christian Church torched by Jewish vandals. The Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes near the Sea of Galilee was set alight on June 18 and anti-Christian graffiti was daubed on its walls. A crowd-funding Read more
A church at the site where Jesus is believed to have fed 5000 people with five loaves and two fish has been badly damaged by fire. Fires were lit on June 17 in the monastery section of the Church of the Multiplication, in Tabgha on the Sea of Galilee. Israeli police said it was arson. Read more