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Man charged with setting fires at church held on $25K bail


SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) A Maine man charged with setting fires at a Massachusetts church with a predominantly Black congregation has been held on $25,000 bail.

Dushko Vulchev, of Houlton, Maine, was arraigned Tuesday in connection with three fires at the Martin Luther King Jr. Presbyterian Church in Springfield on Dec. 13 and Dec. 15.

He is not charged in connection with another more damaging fire at the church on Dec. 28 that made the building unusable. That fire is still under investigation.

He pleaded not guilty to six charges, including attempted arson.

His lawyer called it a case of mistaken identity.

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