New Brunswick police charge 68-year-old man with arson after historic church destroyed by fire

Police in New Brunswick have charged a 68-year-old man with arson after the historic Saint-Simon Catholic Church was engulfed in flames earlier this week. Emergency services were called to the scene early Monday morning in the Acadian community of Saint-Simon.

Social media posts depicted the Saint-Simon Catholic Church, a wooden structure approximately 100 years old, consumed by fire. An investigation conducted by the provincial fire marshal concluded that the fire was deliberately set. Fortunately, the church was unoccupied when the blaze occurred.

The accused, a resident of Saint-Simon, was taken into custody and is scheduled for a bail hearing on Friday. The RCMP are appealing to the public for any information that could assist their investigation into the fire.

Local mayor Bernard Thériault expressed on social media that the fire represented the worst disaster in the small community's history, underscoring the significant loss to the cultural heritage and community fabric of Saint-Simon.

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it was the worst disaster in the history of the small community.