Austin (WBAP/KLIF) – An 18 year old man has been arrested and charged with arson for a fire at an Austin synagogue. Franklin Barrett Sechriest is held on a $100,000 bond for the Halloween night fire at Congregation Beth Israel. According to the Austin Fire Department, the fire was a “small exterior fire” that caused an estimated $25,000 damage to the building, including the synagogue’s wooden doors. No injuries were reported. An arrest affidavit says a suspect resembling Sechriest was recorded on surveillance videos driving a black sport utility vehicle at the synagogue shortly before the fire. That SUV reportedly is registered to a woman who lives at the same address as Sechriest.
