BRIERFIELD, Ala. – Rewards totaling $10,000 were offered Saturday in the investigation of fires that damaged or destroyed five rural churches along winding country roads south of Birmingham.
Gov. Bob Riley said a $5,000 reward was being offered by the state, and a $5,000 reward was posted by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Riley and other officials spoke at a news conference in front of the ruins of Ashby Baptist Church, one of three houses of worship destroyed by the fires early Friday.
Two other Bibb County churches also were damaged.
Investigators believe someone drove along rural roads and stopped to ignite the fires in one sanctuary after the other. No arrests have been made, and authorities said the motive has not been determined.
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