Man arrested for church fire
Motive remains a mystery
AMISSISSIPPI man with a prior criminal record was arrested yesterday in connection with the burning of an African-American church that was spray-painted with the words “Vote Trump”, and the church’s bishop said the man is a member of the congregation.
The state fire marshal said investigators do not believe the fire was politically motivated, but there a signs it may have been done to appear that way.
Andrew McClinton, 45, of Leland, Mississippi, is scheduled to make an initial court appearance today in Greenville – the city where Hopewell Missionary Baptist Church was burned and vandalized on November 1, a week before the US presidential election.
McClinton is charged with first-degree arson of a place of worship, said Warren Strain, spokesman for the Mississippi Department of Public Safety.
Hopewell Bishop Clarence Green said McClinton, who is African-American, is a mem- ber of the church. Green said he didn’t know about the arrest until he was contacted by reporters.
It was not immediately clear whether McClinton is represented by an attorney.
The investigation is continuing, and officials have not revealed a possible motive.
“We do not believe it was politically motivated. There may have been some efforts to make it appear politically motivated,” Mississippi insurance commissioner and fire marshal, Mike Chaney, said.
Mississippi Department of Corrections records show McClinton was sentenced in 1991 to three years’ probation for a grand larceny conviction in Washington County, where Greenville is the county seat. His probation was revoked in 1992 for receiving stolen property in Greenville, said Department of Corrections spokeswoman Grace Simmons Fisher.
In 1997 McClinton was sentenced to seven years in prison for attempted robbery in Lee County and in 2004 he was convicted of armed robbery in Lee County. He served eight years in prison and was released in January 2012.
McClinton’s supervision by the department ended in February, the spokeswoman said.
After the fire, Hopewell congregants began worshipping in a chapel at the predominantly white First Baptist Church of Greenville. Green said last month the generosity of First Baptist demonstrates that “unlimited love” transcends social barriers. James Nichols, senior pastor at First Baptist, said the Hopewell members were welcome to stay as long as they needed a home.
Greenville is in Washington County, a traditionally Democratic stronghold in a solidly Republican state. In the recent presidential election Republican Donald Trump easily carried Mississippi, but Democrat Hillary Clinton received more than twice the votes of Trump in Washington County. – ANA-AP