Laneisha Shantrice Henderson lauded former female navy veteran arrested trying to burn down Martin Luther King Jr home in Atlanta. No known motive.
A woman observed ‘behaving suspiciously’ was preempted from burning down the birth home of civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr earlier this week by two tourists traveling from Utah.
Bryce Grady and Zachery Kempf according to an incident report from the Atlanta Police Department spotted a woman dressed in all black, Laneisha Shantrice Henderson, 26, behaving oddly outside the home, the document said.
Henderson, they told police, was ‘pouring what seemed to be water at the time over the bushes’ and did not think anything of it. When they asked her if she was doing upkeep by watering them, the men said Henderson didn’t respond.
🚨 BREAKING: A Black woman, 26-year-old Laneisha Shantrice Henderson, was arrested and charged after allegedly trying to burn down Martin Luther King Jr.’s birth home in Atlanta. What was her motive? pic.twitter.com/TXECgRPU7T
— Rev. Damien Jones aka Clarence Thomas’ play nephew (@NobleNegroe) December 8, 2023
Even while detained suspect tried to spark the lighter she was holding
At one point a cap to the canister Henderson — a former lauded U.S. Navy veteran — was holding fell into the grass. ‘Instead of looking like a pot for watering plants, it resembled that of a container to hold gas,’ the incident report states.
Police said Henderson ignored the men who continued questioning her, before it became apparent to the two men that it ‘seemed as if she started to rush,’ pouring the gasoline out faster on and around Martin Luther King Jr.’s house.
‘They saw no other option but to apprehend her, along with the help of other bystanders in the area, as they tried to get her detained,’ police said. ‘While trying to detain her, they advised that she was actively trying to spark the lighter to the property and bushes, so they had to remove it out of her hands and get her under control until police responded.’
Upon Kempf and Grady along with bystanders helped detain Henderson until officers arrived. The witnesses said that while they detained her, she allegedly tried to spark the lighter she was holding, the incident report stated as per WXIA-TV.
Henderson is a resident of Brandon, Florida, according to police records. She was wearing black socks without shoes, police said.
The woman was arrested and sent to Grady Memorial Hospital for a psychological evaluation on Thursday. Fulton County Jail records indicate Henderson was booked on Friday.
This dumb bish AKA Laneisha Shantrice Henderson was just arrested after she tried to burn down MLK Jrs. birth home.
She was dousing the outside with gasoline when two tourists stopped her.
Do you think she is mentally ill or pulling a Jesse Smollett? pic.twitter.com/25lOgip7MF— Chris Randolph (@TrumpAF2024) December 8, 2023
No known motive
Henderson was charged with criminal attempt arson in the second degree and felony interference with government property. Her car was towed and was held as evidence by the Atlanta Police Department.
A report via AJC stated Henderson was a U.S. Navy veteran who had earned medals for good conduct among other accolades during her four years in the service.
To date it remained unclear what prompted the woman to seek to want to burn down the landmark building.
The FBI said it was aware of the incident, but could not comment further.
The home, which the National Park Service acquired in 2018, is currently closed until November 2025 for extensive renovations.
