Mother and Teen Daughter Suspected of Lighting VicBlends Court on Fire in Hope Mills

A basketball court donated by celebrity barber, and Hope Mills native VicBlends was destroyed late Wednesday night after a mother and daughter lit the new court on fire.

According to Hope Mills Police, the court was damaged at 10:56 Wednesday night, when "a 16-year-old female juvenile from Hope Mills" lit the court on fire. In a video statement Thursday, VicBlends - real name Victor Fontanez - said the juvenile's mother was involved in the arson as well.

"Det. Sergeant Mariscal conducted an investigation and was able to identify the actor from video surveillance footage at the park," Hope Mills police said. "The park has a robust camera system which records all activity. The video showed the fire was purposely started."

VicBlends released a video addressing the incident on Thursday, saying he will be paying to repair the damage, and that he forgives the mother and daughter for what they did.

"The photos are really heartbreaking to look at, because we worked really hard on this," he said. "This was supposed to be a positive impact on the community. This was supposed to be a safe place for kids to go and chase their dreams at, and someone decided to take that from them, intentionally at that.

"I forgive both of them. The first thing I did when I got this news was I prayed for them. I hate that someone has the mentality to do that to their own people."

The court opened in late November thanks to a partnership with VicBlends, the 26 Project, NoBull and others.