A city councilman in Virginia was set on fire in what witnesses described as a vicious attack Wednesday morning.
Danville City Councilman Lee Vogler was airlifted to a local hospital following the attack, the Danville Police Department said, noting that the “full extent of his injuries” is not yet known.
Vogler, 38, was in the offices of Showcase Magazine when an attacker stormed in with a five-gallon container of flammable liquid, poured it over the councilman, chased him through the building, then set him on fire, publisher Andrew Brooks said in a video posted to social media, adding that Vogler identified the attacker by name when he saw him.
https://www.danville-va.gov/
The councilman was “awake and talking” last he saw him, he continued.
Police identified Shotsie Michael Buck Hayes, 29, as the suspect in the attack. He’s been charged with attempted first degree murder and aggravated malicious wounding, and is being held without bond.
The incident appears to be tied to a personal matter between the two men, police added.
“Based on the investigation at the time of this release, the victim and the suspect are known to each other and the attack stems from a personal matter not related to the victim’s position on Danville City Council or any other political affiliation,” the department said in a statement.
Danville Mayor Alonzo Jones described the event as an “unthinkable act of violence.”
“Our Council is close,” his statement continued. “We’ve worked through challenges together — and now, we face this heartbreak together. Please continue to pray for Lee and his family. We’re standing with him — and with each other.”
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) posted on social media that he is praying “for a swift recovery Lee and for peace to be on the entire Danville community.”
Brooks, the witness to the attack, condemned what happened in an emotional plea to those watching.
“This type of senseless act of violence has to stop,” Brooks said in the video. “You do not have the right as a human being to get upset with someone enough to lash out and attempt to harm them in any way ― much less this way.”
Vogler was first elected to the Danville City Council in 2012 when he was 24 years old, making him the youngest person ever elected to that position, according to the city’s website.
Danville, a city along the border of Virginia and North Carolina, has a population of around 42,000 people.
