Two brothers accused of firebombing an Atlanta police officer’s home to protect their crack cocaine business were denied bond Thursday afternoon.
The siblings — Wesley and Quinton Wise — were arrested earlier this month on arson charges after investigators determined they paid a man $50 cash and $100 worth of crack to throw an incendiary device through the kitchen window of an officer’s southwest Atlanta home.
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Police said the brothers ran a drug business on Betsy Avenue and didn’t want a cop living near their “trap house.”
“Anyone that messes with an Atlanta police officer or a member of any portion of our team, there will be a reckoning for that,” Atlanta police Maj. Michael O’Connor said at a news conference announcing the arrests. “We never stopped working on this case.”
The officer, who has not been named, moved into her new home shortly before the June attack, authorities said.
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“It’s a very tragic situation,” said Ken Allen, a retired detective and representative for the Atlanta Police Union. “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.”
Atlanta firefighters said the home would have been destroyed if they hadn’t extinguished the blaze before it spread to other rooms.
Police also linked the Wise brothers to a January fire at another neighbor’s home, O’Connor said. That neighbor was not an officer, but police believe the brothers had an issue with the woman who lived there, he said.
“These two brothers basically ran the entire street,” O’Connor said, adding the two had a sizable drug operation. “People were afraid to tell on them.”
Wesley Wise was arrested Aug. 14 during a narcotics raid that led to the seizure of 150 grams of crack, police said. He is charged with first-degree arson, cocaine trafficking, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, and two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Quinton Wise was arrested the following day and charged with one count of first-degree arson, records show.
Both men remain held at the Fulton County Jail. Their next court appearance is scheduled for Nov. 14.
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