Man Charged in Arson of Historic Brooklyn Church 

A towering wooden steeple had watched over Bushwick Avenue since before the Civil War. On June 19, flames swallowed it in minutes, leaving a Brooklyn congregation without its historic home and a neighborhood staring at the ruins of one of its most familiar landmarks. 

Authorities have now arrested and charged 24-year-old John Jones with federal arson in connection with the three-alarm fire at South Bushwick Reformed Church. The charge remains an allegation, and Jones is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. 

The arrest gives the congregation its first measure of accountability, but it cannot replace the worship space, community programs and pieces of neighborhood history lost in the blaze. 

A landmark disappeared into the flames 

Firefighters received the first report of heavy flames at approximately 1:22 p.m. on June 19. The fire quickly grew to three alarms, bringing nearly 200 firefighters and emergency workers to the church at 855 Bushwick Avenue. 

Video captured the steeple burning before it collapsed into the roof. The fire also spread to the rectory and affected a neighboring building. 

No one was inside the church when the fire began, according to the FDNY. CBS New York reported that one firefighter suffered a minor injury and declined further treatment. 

“It seemed like there was a collective gasp, and then a moment of silence,” neighbor Chelsea Hightower told CBS New York while describing the steeple’s collapse. 

The loss reached far beyond the structure itself. The church hosted worship services, food distributions, youth activities, resource fairs and other community programs. Its congregation may have been small, but its neighborhood presence was not. 

Built in 1853, the Greek Revival church was one of New York City’s few surviving landmarked wooden houses of worship. The city designated it a landmark in 1968. Its congregation traces its history even further back, to Dutch settlers who established a religious community in Brooklyn during the 1600s. 

The steeple had already survived years of structural trouble. After Tropical Storm Isaias damaged it in 2020, congregants and supporters raised money for repairs completed in 2022. That restoration made its destruction four years later especially painful. 

Surveillance footage became central to the case 

The FDNY initially said the fire’s cause remained under investigation. Fire marshals later classified it as incendiary, meaning investigators concluded that someone intentionally started it. 

According to the federal complaint, surveillance footage showed Jones attempting to enter the church before walking to a nearby store and purchasing a lighter. 

Authorities allege that he returned to the side of the building at approximately 12:41 p.m. A large plume of smoke appeared from the church a little more than half an hour later. 

Federal prosecutors subsequently said Jones admitted responsibility during an interview with investigators. That reported statement forms part of the government’s case, but it does not remove his right to challenge the evidence in court. 

Jones was taken into custody after an off-duty NYPD officer working security at a Midtown Manhattan pharmacy allegedly saw him shoplifting food. A records check reportedly revealed an outstanding warrant connected to the church investigation. 

Jones had also been arrested on a criminal-mischief allegation after authorities said he damaged a television at a Williamsburg restaurant on June 28, nine days after the church fire. Reporting indicates that he missed a later court appearance, resulting in a bench warrant. 

Contrary to some social-media claims, available reporting does not establish a long history of prior arrests. The New York Post, citing law-enforcement sources, reported that Jones had no known earlier offenses before the church fire and the restaurant incident. 

Federal charge carries serious consequences 

Jones faces a federal arson charge. If convicted, he could receive a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison, according to authorities. 

Those potential penalties should not be reported as a sentence. The case remains at an early stage, and prosecutors must prove the charge in court. 

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the fire endangered residents and damaged more than a building. 

“New Yorkers deserve to practice their faith freely and without fear,” Tisch said, adding that the destruction of the landmark would be met with “swift justice.” 

FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore described the intentional burning of a house of worship as an attack on both a historic structure and the security it represents. 

“This fire placed lives at risk, including the first responders who responded to protect the church and the surrounding neighborhood,” Bonsignore said. 

Authorities have not publicly established a motive. No verified evidence currently shows that the church was targeted because of its Christian identity, its congregation, or any particular community program. Calling the incident a hate crime without such evidence would therefore be premature. 

A congregation facing life after the fire 

Before the arrest, Pastor James Steward described the discovery that the fire had been deliberately set as another layer of grief. 

“We are even more disturbed, devastated that someone would intentionally target us,” he told News 12. 

The congregation moved its services online while church leaders explored rebuilding, relocation and preservation options. Demolition work and questions about the remaining structure have made that future uncertain. 

Still, Steward insisted that the church’s identity did not end when its steeple fell. 

“Church is always the people,” he said. 

The arrest may answer one question about the fire, but it cannot restore a landmark that carried generations of baptisms, worship services and community memories. 

The legal case will now move through the federal courts, where the evidence must be tested, and the accused must receive due process. In Bushwick, a different process has already begun: rebuilding a community institution after its most visible symbol disappeared into smoke. 

The steeple is gone. The congregation, however, is still standing.