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Police are searching for suspects after a church caught fire and was destroyed in a northeast Alberta community Friday night.
In a Sunday news release, Wood Buffalo RCMP said officers responded to a 10:30 p.m. call of a structure fire in the community of Janvier. Responding officers reported that the Janvier Church was “fully engulfed in flames” upon their arrival.
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Police said witnesses reported seeing a silver sedan driving away from the church around the time of the blaze. The fire has since been extinguished, but the church was ultimately destroyed.
Bishop Gary Franken of the diocese of St. Paul, which includes Janvier, confirmed in a Saturday evening email to Postmedia that the building was the community’s older Catholic church. The church is adjacent to a newer building, St. Gabriel Catholic Church, which was unharmed. No injuries were reported.
Councillor Shane Janvier of the Chipewyan Prairie Dene First Nation condemned the destruction in a video he posted to his Facebook account. The cause of the fire is still being investigated, but Janvier said early indications point to arson.
“The significance of this old church in the community—lots of celebrations at this church over the years, lots of weddings, lots of baptisms, this is a place where we’ve come to say our last respects to our loved ones and our ancestors… enough’s enough. We’ve gotta start looking out for one another as a community,” said Janvier.
“If we’re going to make statements that this is our land and we’re going to fight for this land, then we damn well better learn to respect our land. That’s not respecting our community.”
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Anyone with information or footage regarding the fire is asked to contact Wood Buffalo RCMP at 780-788-4000 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS). Tips to Crime Stoppers are always anonymous and can be sent to tipsubmit.com.
Janvier is approximately 400 kilometres northeast of Edmonton.
RCMP investigate two church arsons in Barrhead
The news comes after Barrhead RCMP said they are investigating a pair of arson fires that severely damaged two of the town’s churches earlier this month.
Police said the Dec. 7 fires — at The Glenreagh Church and The United Church — were intentionally set and are being treated as arson. An older model two-tone truck was observed leaving the scene at The Glenreagh Church and is believed to be linked to the fires.
Investigators are asking anyone with information regarding the two fires to call Barrhead RCMP at 780-674-4848.
Barrhead is approximately 120 kilometres northwest of Edmonton.
— with files from Vincent McDermott, Fort McMurray Today
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