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Investigation into arson of Hillsborough GOP office continues

HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. — Investigators continue to seek information related to an arson and graffiti case in Hillsborough.

Last year, the Orange County Republican Party headquarters, located at 347 Ja-Max Drive, caught on fire when Molotov cocktails were thrown through the building’s front windows. No one was inside at the time, and firefighters extinguished the flames before they spread to other buildings.

Graffiti stating “NAZI REPUBLICANS LEAVE TOWN OR ELSE” was also spray-painted on the side of an adjacent building.

[PREVIOUS COVERAGE: GOP office reopens after firebombing in North Carolina]

According to authorities, officers saw a car turn into the Daniel Boone shopping center around 2:55 a.m. on Oct. 16, and pass all the open businesses as it traveled in the direction of the Orange County GOP office. Investigators said the timing of the vehicle sighting was consistent with witness reports of when the fire started, and that the car was traveling north on NC-86 and passed under I-85 before pulling into the shopping center.

Investigators said they’re also working to determine if there is a connection between the case and an act of vandalism that happened in Carrboro in Sept. 2015.

The victim of that crime was an outspoken activist and may have been targeted by the same people who committed arson in Hillsborough, authorities said.

The Hillsborough Police Department; the FBI; the State Bureau of Investigation; the Orange County Sheriff's Office; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the U.S. Secret Service are working jointly on the investigation. The FBI is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to solving the crime.

Anyone with information about the crimes described above is asked to call the FBI Charlotte Field Office at 704-672-6100.

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