Man Sentenced to 25 Years for Burning Down 3 Historic Louisiana Churches

A young man from Lousiana was sentenced to 25 years for setting fire to three historic churches. The Justice Department reported that in February, Holden Matthews (23) pleaded guilty to burning down the Baptist churches in 2019, explaining the fire was meant to promote his profile in the "black metal" community.

Sentenced to 25 years and $2.6 Million in Restitution

According to the plea agreement, Holden Matthews imitated a Norwegian musician who "gained notoriety" by burning down churches in the 1990s.

Assistant Attorney General of the Justice Department's civil rights division Eric Dreiband stated that “The churches survived for nearly 150 years but did not survive this defendant’s warped act of hatred."

After pleading guilty to one count of using fire to commit a federal felony and to another three of violating the Church Arson Prevention Act, Matthews was deplored to 25 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $2.6 million fine in restitution to the destroyed churches.

At the court pronouncement on Monday, Holden Matthews said “There are not enough words in the English language to say how sorry I am," and added that he had not hurt only his family and friends, "but I have hurt my brothers and sisters in Christ."