Search on for suspect who started fire in Peoria Planned Parenthood clinic
PEORIA, Ill. (CBS) -- Arson investigators late Tuesday were looking into a fire at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Central Illinois.
Jennifer Welch, the president and chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood Illinois, said someone broke a window Sunday night at the Peoria Planned Parenthood location – and started the fire.
No one was in the building at the time, but one firefighter suffered minor injuries, according to CBS affiliate WMBD-TV.
WMBD reported witnesses described the arsonist as a white male with medium length hair, who had on flannel and heavy work boots. One witness told police the man was carrying something that looked like a lunch box, and she saw the man run behind the Planned Parenthood site, punch out a window, and throw the box inside, the station reported.
The damage from the fire was estimated at $150,000, the station reported.
Welch's full statement on the fire is as follows:
"On the evening of Sunday, January 15, the Peoria Planned Parenthood Health Center was vandalized when someone threw a fire accelerant through a window, causing a fire in the building. We are grateful to the prompt response from firefighters who put out the fire, however there is significant damage to the building. Thankfully, no patients or team members were present or harmed. Senseless acts of vandalism have been on the rise across the country and Illinois has become a target as extreme and divisive rhetoric increases. We are working with local authorities and will prosecute the person or people involved to the fullest extent of the law.
"The vast majority of our Peoria Health Center patients were coming to us for family planning, STI testing and treatment and other reproductive health care. While we did offer medication abortion at Peoria, it was not a site for in-clinic procedures. This act of vandalism will have a devastating impact on the community's ability to access birth control, cancer screenings and gender-affirming care. We will not stop providing the essential health care our patients need and deserve. We pledge to work swiftly to meet the needs of our Peoria patients and those traveling from other states to receive reproductive health care."
