Jehovah’s Witness centers hit by arsons in Wash. state
At the center of the investigation into crimes against Jehovah’s Witnesses — including two fires that destroyed worship centers — is a question that has vexed Washington state investigators, the governor and pretty much anyone who has come into contact with the religious denomination:
Who could muster this much destructive rage against a religion full of pacifists?
On Friday morning, Thurston County authorities responded to a predawn fire in the city of Lacey, Wash. But by the time firefighters arrived, it was too late. The blaze had caused the roof to collapse and destroyed the kingdom hall, the name Jehovah’s Witnesses give to their worship centers.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives quickly ruled that the fire was intentionally set, saying it fit the pattern of the other kingdom hall attacks in Thurston County over the past nine months that have rocked the Jehovah’s Witness community.
No one has been arrested, and the only image of a suspect is surveillance video of a person in a hoodie and coveralls pouring gasoline on the side of a kingdom hall, then sparking a bloom of fire. Authorities don’t know whether that person is the only perpetrator, and a motive continues to elude investigators.
“Why is this specific religion being targeted?” Thurston County Sheriff John Snaza told KOMO, the ABC affiliate in Seattle.
“Why are these churches being targeted? What are they doing that is so wrong and oppressive?”
The attacks began March 19, with intentionally set fires starting minutes apart, sending fire crews racing from a kingdom hall in Olympia to one in Tumwater, according to Seattle-area NBC affiliate KING. A July 3 fire also targeted the Olympia kingdom hall, this time destroying it. And Aug. 8, someone set a minor fire at a kingdom hall in Yelm. Authorities also recovered what they described as a dummy bomb at the scene.
In the midst of those attacks, on May 15, someone fired a volley of rifle rounds at the Yelm kingdom hall, causing about $10,000 in damage. Police collected nearly three dozen bullets.
All the attacks have occurred early in the morning, and there are no reports of injuries.
Still, Jehovah’s Witness leaders in the area say the attacks are a blow to their community.
“It’s devastating for the whole congregation,” Dan Woollett, one of the ministers who helped build the hall in Lacey in 1976, told KING. “It does make you sad, but it’s just a building. No matter who we are, no matter what our religious persuasion is, we have to cope with the problems we face.”