Second teen charged with burning down historic Whitfield County church

Jacob Plott, left, and Forrest Jones

The Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a second teenager connected to the Beaverdale Baptist Church arson.

Forrest A. Jones, 19, was arrested this afternoon, one day after the sheriff’s office arrested another teenager in connection with the case. A Beaverdale Baptist Church building, which is more than 100 years old, caught fire twice this year.

On March 21, according to an incident report, firefighters extinguished the flames after the building suffered “extensive damage.” The building caught fire again on April 16, but this time the firefighters could not reach it on time. The building burned down.

Investigators knew someone lit the building on fire because no electricity was in there at the time of the fires. The church was using the building as storage.

On Thursday, the sheriff’s office arrested 18-year-old Jacob Dylan Plott on two counts of arson. Investigators say that witnesses and evidence linked Plott to the fire.