Deputies announced yesterday that they’ve made two arrests in a 9-year-old arson case in York County. Authorities said Robert Lester was charged with setting Pak’s Martial Arts Center in Rock Hill on fire in 2009.
WRHI’s news partner Channel 9 learned an alleged accomplice, Catherine Neal, has also been charged with arson. York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson said they received a tip about the incident back in the summer.
When the crime happened in June 2009, both suspects were teenagers. The fire broke out overnight and destroyed the building, and investigators found racist graffiti on the building walls.
The Pak family eventually rebuilt but the case went cold until the last few weeks.