A Catholic church in Reston, Virginia, was vandalized this past weekend, with police saying that graffiti had defaced parts of the church and smoldering mulch was evident on its grounds.
Fairfax County police said the county’s fire department was first called to St. John Neumann’s Catholic Church at 11900 Lawyers Road around 6:45 a.m. Sunday when reports came in about the mulch.
Fairfax Fire and Rescue “detected an accelerant” that police said was likely used in the mulch’s combustion. Fire officials also noticed graffiti on parts of the building at this time, which is when they contacted police for further investigation.