The Burke County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a man suspected of trespassing on the property of a church with a primarily Black congregation and spreading raw cotton on the front steps.
The man “is wanted for questioning regarding an incident involving trespassing and inappropriate activity” at Palmer Grove Baptist Church, according to a New Year’s Eve social media post from the sheriff’s office.
A sheriff’s office spokesperson said Friday that investigators identified someone they want to speak with about the incident, which took place around 8 p.m. Dec. 7. Church staff and members discovered the cotton before the next day’s Sunday morning services. The church is off Old Waynesboro Road, south of Augusta.
It’s not clear what charges the man could face. Col. Lee Webster, who was brought onto the case Wednesday, said he’s uncertain about the motive.
The sheriff’s office released a flyer this week with a photo of the man and a car.
Images taken from the church’s security cameras appear to show a man with a beard carrying a large handful of cotton up a ramp to the building, where the sheriff’s office said he “littered raw field cotton onto the porch steps.”
Another photo shows the suspect’s car, a red Ford Mustang with a body style manufactured between 1994 and 2005. The car had not been located as of Friday morning.
“I lived here all my life, and I don’t recognize the vehicle or the individual,” Webster told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution during a phone call.
Webster noted that Burke County is a largely agricultural area, with many farmers growing cotton. He said the incident was not “characteristic” of the county and that there have been no similar occurrences.
Anyone with information about the incident or the individual is asked to contact the sheriff’s office at 706-554-2133, or the criminal investigations division at 706-554-6633. Callers may remain anonymous, the sheriff’s office said.
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