Suspects arrested in Delaware church arsons

Delaware State Police have arrested two men in connection with intentionally set fires at three churches in Felton.

Three churches in Felton, Del. were set on fire on December 2. Healing Hands christian Church was completely burned to the ground, while Manship Chapel and the Laws Mennonite Church suffered less damage.

On Monday, deputy fire marshals arrested 26-year-old Alex Harrington in the High Point Mobile Home Park and 25-year-old Joseph Skochelak at a Dover apartment complex. Both men face charges including arson, burglary and conspiracy.

Harrington and Skochelak are also accused in a separate burglary at St. James AME Church in Frederica on the same night as the three church fires. State Police Master Cpl. Gary Fournier said the pair allegedly broke through a rear window at that church and put ceremonial garments on the altar. They then grabbed a metal box which contained papers of no value and fled. They now also face burglary and theft charges.

The Delaware State Fire Marshal’s office got help in the investigation from the Delaware State Police, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.