Atlanta police officer was victim of arson attack, union rep says

An Atlanta police officer will have to delay the move into her first home after someone threw a firebomb through her kitchen window, Channel 2 Action News reported.

The news station agreed not to disclose the officer’s identity or the location of her home for her safety. The residence is in southwest Atlanta, the same community she is sworn to protect.

Ken Allen, a retired detective and representative for the Atlanta Police Union, said he believes the officer was targeted because of her profession.

“It’s a very tragic situation,” he told Channel 2. “You're at an emotional time, going through making the purchase of your home, getting ready to move in to be a part of it, and the next thing you know, you've got people in that neighborhood torching you because of what you do for a living.”

Someone used a rock to break through the officer’s kitchen window and threw what Allen described as a Molotov cocktail into the home. The resulting fire scorched much of her kitchen.

Atlanta fire confirmed to Channel 2 they are investigating the incident as arson. Atlanta police are conducting their own investigation, and a motive has not been determined, the news station reported.

The police union, a local branch of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, is organizing a fundraiser to help the officer get back on her feet.