Suspect arrested in Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints fire

An arson suspect was taken into custody Sunday night following a three-alarm fire at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Cape Girardeau.

At approximately 9:30 p.m., multiple crews responded to a fire at the church, 1048 W. Cape Rock Drive, to find the building engulfed in flames, a news release from the Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Office stated. No one was injured.

The church's stake director Kevin Dickson said he is grateful no one was inside the building.

“We are being told that no one was hurt, that there was no one in the building, and that’s what we’re grateful for, because we can rebuild a building, but we didn’t want anybody to be hurt,” Dickson said. “It’s a special building to us. It’s an important place where we can worship, but it can be re-built.”

Sheriff's deputies who were on the scene began an investigation into the fire's cause. It's currently being investigated as arson, and the state fire marshal has been called to look into the incident.