SC man who set Byron church ablaze sentenced to prison. What to know
A South Carolina man will serve prison time for setting the Byron United Methodist Church on fire in 2024.
Luke Westefeld, 35, of North Augusta, SC, was sentenced Thursday to five years in prison after pleading guilty to setting the Byron United Methodist Church on fire in August 2024.
After he was denied water by the church’s choir members, Westefeld broke into the church later that day and set it on fire, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia.
His prison time will be followed by three years of supervised release.
“Setting fire to a house of worship is a deeply destructive act in a community,” said U.S. Attorney William R. “Will” Keyes in the news release. “By working together with local, state, and federal law enforcement, we will hold offenders accountable for these grievous crimes.”
What happened
Westefeld approached choir members near the Byron United Methodist Church’s parking lot on Aug. 20, 2024, and asked for water. The members denied him, “telling officers they were concerned about their safety,” according to the news release.
He broke into the church later that night. Westefeld became angry at was angered by several things he saw while walking around the church, including unlit candlesticks they because he believed they should be lit throughout the night. He also saw food in the office’s pantry, which he thought should have been given to the poor, and cash and checks.
He came across a Bible on the pulpit opened to Ezekiel 24:21, “which spoke of the desecration of the sanctuary due to sin,” according to the news release.
“Westefeld took it as a sign for him to burn the Church,” the news release said.
After lighting the candlesticks, Westefeld used them to burn American and Methodist flags in the sanctuary, the office and the church’s van.
He stole a plastic gas can from a nearby home to use as an accelerant. However, there was no gasoline in it, according to federal prosecutors. He went to the van behind the church and “stuffed his white shirt in the gas cap of the van and set it on fire,” the news release said.
“The act of setting fire to a place of worship is not just an attack on a building, it’s an assault on the community’s spirit,” said ATF Atlanta’s Resident Agent in Charge Robert W. Davis. “We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure justice is served.”
