UPDATE: Third teen arrested in church arson investigation

Jul. 14—A third suspect, a male juvenile, has been arrested as part of the State Police's investigation into the burning of the Saint Colman Catholic Church on Irish Mountain Road near Shady Spring.

West Virginia State Trooper D. Daniels, who is in charge of the investigation, told The Register-Herald Thursday that the 17-year-old male juvenile was arrested Monday and charged with arson and conspiracy.

Daniels said he will be held at a juvenile detention facility for 10 days.

Two other teens have also been charged in connection with the church fire.

Braxton Allan Miller, 18, of Charleston, was charged with arson and conspiracy, and James Dean Elmore, 19, of Beckley, was charged with accessory after the fact and conspiracy.

Miller and Elmore are being held at Southern Regional Jail on $75,000 bonds.

With the arrest of these three individuals, Daniels said he considers the investigation complete.

The fire at Saint Colman Catholic Church was reported on the morning of June 26 after it had already burned to the ground.

According to the criminal complaint, Miller, Elmore, the 17-year-old male juvenile, and two other individuals were drinking beer and partying at the church just before midnight on June 25.

According to an interview conducted by Daniels on June 29, Elmore states that Miller started the fire by lighting a set of plastic flowers and leaving them in the middle of the church.

Daniels said he would not have been able to solve this case without the help of the community.

"It just goes to show how important (the church) is to the community," he said.

Daniels said he's heard talk that St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Hinton intends to build a memorial on the site of the former church.

Saint Colman Catholic Church was initially built in 1877. For the past several years, the church and the surrounding cemetery and grounds have been maintained by parishioners at St. Patrick's Church.