Fire investigators are looking into an overnight fire that damaged a Memphis church. It happened at the Holiness Outreach Ministries on Dunlap. The back rooms of the church went up in flames, but the pastor says it's no accident.
He says a man stormed in during Mother's Day services threatening his wife and the congregation. Pastor Leon West said, "He came in and threatened her and threatened me. He said that he was going to kill her, then he said he was going to kill us too. Then he said he was going to burn the church down." Pastor West called 9-1-1, but the man left before police arrived.
Then early Monday morning, a fire destroyed the church robes and singed the walls, but no one was hurt. The pastor says when he got word of the blaze, he wasn't surprised. "I believed him, but there was nothing I could do." Pastor West says while the building burned, fortunately the alleged victim is safe. He says the ironic part about this situation is that an order of protection against the suspect was filed just days ago. Heidi Verbeek, Crime Victim's Center said, "If he was served that ex-partee that could have been his reason to say O-K, that's it." She says sometimes filing an order of protection sparks even more danger for the victim. "Because he knows she's trying to do something about it and he knows he's lost control, so he wants to control the situation even more. He wants to do what he can to control her life."
Despite the damage, Pastor West still considers the church blessed. He says a building can always be rebuilt.
