Man accused of setting churches on fire in Broadalbin

BROADALBIN, N.Y. ( NEWS10 ) — Five acts of vandalism and arson in less than 48 hours in the village of Broadalbin has caught the attention of the ATF and FBI. NEWS10 spoke to local law enforcement and business owners about the very latest on the investigation.

Tuesday the Broadalbin Presbyterian church had its back door attacked with what the sheriff called incendiary devices.  Then after the fire department put out that fire, hours later more damage was done to the front door.

On Wednesday, a brick was thrown through a window at the Broadalbin Baptist church.

The next three scenes are from Thursday morning.  A pile of tires was set ablaze on a utility pole in front of the Broadalbin Adirondack Country Market.  Then over on Rail Road Street there was damage on the back of a warehouse. The boards were blown off and a small fire happened from another incendiary device.

And St. Jospeh’s church was not spared either. The front door is visibly burnt by another device that had exploded there.

The Historic Broadalbin Hotel owner, David Thompson, tells NEWS10 this streak of arson and crimes has him worried.

“It could have been us you know? And then when you’re hearing other places being hit. I came over and kind of did stuff around the hotel, just to make sure we weren’t going to be hit,” said Thompson.

Father Robert Phillips at the Baptist church where the sheriff says a 50–60-pound cinder block was thrown through a window says they got lucky. “We really didn’t get a lot by way of the fires starting and stuff like that, we just had a brick thrown through our window. That’s all we got and we’re thankful for that,” said Father Phillips.

The sheriff says the State Police have a person in custody, “State Police located a subject matching the description of the scene, he’s in custody now. Transferred to State Police in Mayfield.” He says the investigation is ongoing and could lead to more serious charges if the district attorney determines this to be a hate crime. “The FBI has to be notified under federal law if it involves a House of Worship. And so, the State Emergency Management, so that everyone’s been notified. And the FBI has offered to assist in any way they can at this point. The ATF and other federal agencies have been very helpful, and the test will be done by their labs.”

The sheriff tells NEWS10 reporter, James De La Fuente, people in the village should be vigilant near Houses of Worship as incidents of this nature “may spur copycats”.

State Police confirm they have arrested 39-year-old Leon G. Nadeau of Broadalbin for two counts of arson in the third degree and one count of arson in the fifth degree. He is at the Fulton County Correctional Facility where he awaits arraignment.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NEWS10 ABC.