Overview
- The three-alarm fire that toppled the steeple of the South Bushwick Reformed Church occurred on June 19 and gutted the landmarked 1853 sanctuary.
- Federal authorities arrested 24-year-old John Jones on August 5 and unsealed a criminal complaint charging him with intentionally setting the blaze.
- The EDNY complaint alleges store and street surveillance show the suspect buying a lighter, trying to enter the church and circling the building before the fire, though those claims remain unproven in court.
- Officials say no congregants were inside during the fire and one firefighter suffered minor injuries and refused medical care.
- City demolition was paused in July, the site was returned to the church, and preservationists are doing asbestos remediation, shoring work and fundraising to stabilize the surviving Fellowship Hall.