Spokesman of the New York fire department, Frank Gibbon, said the fire that destroyed the 160-year-old Serbian Orthodox church in Manhattan last month was caused by lit candles that the sexton left burning during the Easter holidays.
The New York Post cited Gibbon's statement, who stressed the blaze was not staged by angry members of the Croat community.
"Our investigators concluded that the candles that were not completely put out caused the fire," Gibbon said.
The newspaper says the investigators managed to collect evidence at the Serbian St. Sava church located on West 25th Street that prove the sexton caused the May 1 fire by accident, by not extinguishing the candles, adding a criminal charge will not be pressed against any person.