Police investigate suspicious fire at Saanich church
Saanich police and fire investigators are looking into a suspicious fire at a church in the Royal Oak area Monday.
Police at the scene said the fire happened sometime overnight at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at 701 Mann Ave.
Staff with the church called police after they noticed the fire damage around 10 a.m. Monday morning.
The fire occurred sometime overnight between Nov. 20 and Nov. 21, 2022. (CTV News)
The fire appears to have originated at the entrance to the chapel of the Mormon church. The glass doors leading into the building were blackened with soot and the heat from the flames shattered some panes of glass.
"There is a table in there that was very close to the front doors that could have caught fire," said Saanich police Const. Markus Anastasiades on Monday.
"Fortunately it did not, so it seems at this point the fire was contained just to the outside and the front doors," he said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and fire investigators along with members of the Saanich police forensic section were collecting evidence at the scene Monday.
"It's still very early on in the investigation but I can tell you at this point that we are treating this as suspicious," said Anastasiades.
Anyone with information on the fire is asked to contact Saanich police.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
All Alberta wildfires to date in 2024 believed to be human-caused: province
There are 63 wildfires burning in Alberta's forest protection area as of Wednesday morning and seven mutual aid fires, including one in the Municipal District of Peace.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Suspects waving weapons, smashing glass in Toronto jewelry store robbery caught on video
Arrests have been made after five men were captured on video rampaging through a jewelry store in Toronto, waving weapons and smashing glass display cases.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
New evidence challenges the Pentagon's account of a horrific attack as the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan: CNN exclusive
New video evidence uncovered by CNN significantly undermines two Pentagon investigations into an ISIS-K suicide attack outside Kabul airport, during the American withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.