WILMINGTON — A three-page letter that was sent to a local church containing ‘vial and hateful’ language is being investigated by the Wilmington Police Department.
On Wednesday, members of the New Hanover County NAACP along with police held a press conference at the WPD headquarters to address the incident.
“It was called in reference to a three-page letter delivered to St. Andrew’s AME Zion Church on Sunday, Dec. 15, which contained vile and hateful language directed at African Americans in our community. The letter was typed, unsigned and missing a return address,” according to a press release.
Chief Ralph Evangelous addressed the press conference and explained the steps the department will take to catch the individual and protect the church.
Evangelous made the following points:
- The case is being treated as a hate crime and has been assigned to a violent crimes detective, who’s actively working it;
- WPD is working with the postal inspector to determine the origin of the letter;
- Officers have increased patrols around all churches in the area;
- WPD Crime Prevention will review church security plans, ensuring they are as safe and secure as possible.
“We will not sit back and allow ourselves to be divided,” Evangelous said. “We stand here together. There’s no place in our society [for] a letter like that with the language and disgusting rhetoric that we should be beyond. Let’s fix what the problems are. Let’s not tear down what we have. That’s what this letter, this individual is trying to do. We stand here united. We’re going to be here together. We’re going to fix this and move on.”
If any other groups or churches receive similar letters, WPD is asking them to limit the number of people who touch the mail in an attempt to preserve forensic evidence.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Wilmington police at (910)-343-3609.
[Editor’s note: Port City Daily, along with several other news outlets, were notified about the conference only after the fact. It appears members of the church themselves notified WECT, but WPD did not announce the conference.]
