Westwood News
Church Fire Deemed An Act of Arson
By Damian Kelly
Jun 20, 2012 - 2:43:54 PM

WESTWOOD—A fire at the Westwood Hills Christian Church on the evening of Friday, June 15 has been deemed arson.

Westwood Hills Christan Church. Photo courtesy of Yelp

According to information from the Los Angeles Fire Department blog, Arson/Counter Terrorism Section Investigators who were at the scene of the fire activated the regional “House of Worship Arson Task Force.”  Specialists from LAFD, Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation joined in to determine the cause of the blaze which damaged the 61-year-old gothic-style church.

Firefighters were called to the church at 10808 Le Conte Avenue about 9:14pm amid reports of a fire.

After quickly entering the sanctuary of the church, firefighters found furnishings that had been deliberately set on fire.  The blaze was quickly extinguished and no one was injured but at there was at least $5,000 in property damage.

In a statement, LAFD spokesman Brian Humphrey called the act of arson at the church a “particularly repugnant” crime.  He added that the activation of the House of Worship Arson Task Force “underscores the importance to our community as a whole, in quickly apprehending those responsible.”

Anyone with information about the fire is urged to contact the LAFD Arson/Counter-Terrorism Section at (213) 893-9800.