2 charged with trying to destroy Tillman statue in SC

COLUMBIA, SC (AP) — Authorities say they have arrested two people after they tried to destroy a monument of an avowed racist at the South Carolina Statehouse by setting it on fire with chemicals.

Investigators said they found the incendiary device around 10:30 p.m. Saturday at the foot of the “Pitchfork” Ben Tillman statue. Authorities say the device contained thermite, a chemical mixture used in welding to melt pieces of metal to fuse them together. The statue was not damaged,.

Authorities charged 19-year-old Anna Elizabeth Jordan and 36-year-old James McTeer with arson and use of a destructive device.