A 68-year old man has been arrested for the arson that destroyed Saint-Simon Church, which was believed to be the largest wooden building in New Brunswick. Firefighters responded to the incident early Monday morning.
Caraquet Fire Department Chief Luc Dugas reported that motion detectors signaled someone was inside the church about 10 minutes before the fire department was called. In a press release Tuesday, New Brunswick police confirmed that the fire was “intentionally set.”
68-year-old Gilles Mallet was arrested and charged as the suspect for setting the 108-year old structure ablaze. He is in custody and will appear in court on Friday, August 28 for a bail hearing. No motive has been announced.
The Canada-based Catholic Civil Rights League has been documenting attacks on Catholic churches, and noted previously that violence against Catholic churches in the country has increased in the past few years.
In the United States, there have been at least 27 attacks on Catholic churches so far in 2026.
Most recently, a historic mural of Our Lady of Guadalupe was vandalized at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Corpus Christi, Texas on Wednesday, August 12, and on August 1, a statue of the Virgin Mary at St. Rita’s in Queens, New York, was decapitated.
Police have charged a 68-year-old man with arson after Saint Simon Catholic Church was intentionally set on fire in New Brunswick, Canada.
— Catholics for Catholics 🇺🇲 (@CforCatholics) August 26, 2026
Pray to end anti-catholic hate for we must keep our places of worship safe and secure. pic.twitter.com/b3axMdtsqt
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