Jehovas Witness Online

For the third time in two weeks, a local Jehovah's Witness congregation hall was the target of an arsonist, but this time a passerby was able to get a description of the suspect.

Firefighters were called to the hall located in the 2000-block of Adams Avenue around 12:30 a.m. Tuesday after someone noticed the fence outside the building was cut, and some of the lettering on a wall was damaged.

The passerby waited for the suspect to come outside, and then chased the man, but he was able to escape, authorities said.

The suspect is described as a man standing 5'8" to 6' tall, wearing dark clothing, and a white hood or mask, said San Diego Fire spokesperson Maurice Luque.

Once fire crews entered the building, they found the insides had been doused with gasoline and there were matches nearby, but there was no fire, Luque said.

The suspect was not able to set a fire because there was probably too much gas inside and there was nothing left to burn, according to San Diego Fire's Fred Herrera.

"It appeared because of the prior fires, all of the furnishings had been taken out, so the fire didn't have a chance to develop," Herrera said.

The same building was first attacked two weeks ago on Dec. 20. During that incident, someone broke in and set the drapes and stage on fire using matches. Investigators at the time thought the fire was set to cover up a robbery.

The hall was attacked by a vandal again on Dec. 30. This time the culprit set a back room on fire and painted the numbers "666" on two outside walls.

Police are investigating that incident as a hate crime.

Congregation members tell San Diego 6 News they are "disconcerted" and "baffled" the attacks keep happening. A regional church official says security cameras will be set up in the next few days.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and Crime Stoppers are offering $1,000 for information leading to an arrest, and another $9,000 for information leading to a conviction.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Metro Arson Strike Team at 619-236-6815. To remain anonymous, call San Diego County Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477 or place a web tip at www.sdcrimestoppers.com.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers. Five Filters recommends: Donate to Wikileaks.