Naperville man tells NBC 5 he burned cross in Grant Park, says he was unaware of racial implications

Chicago police announced Tuesday that a person of interest was taken into custody in a cross-burning in Grant Park last week — an incident that alarmed officials, faith leaders and the community.

The cross was torched the afternoon of June 9. Police opened an arson investigation as some local officials called for the suspect to be charged with a hate crime. No charges had been announced by Tuesday afternoon.

The police update came after NBC5 Chicago aired an interview with a 21-year-old Naperville man who admitted that he set up and burned the cross. He identified himself as Merlin Lu and said he was a senior at the University of Illinois Chicago. However, UIC said Lu isn’t currently enrolled at the school.

In the NBC5 Chicago interview, the man said he wasn’t aware of the implications of the burning cross and he didn’t intend for it to have racial undertones.

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This report was published in partnership with the Chicago Sun-Times. For more, visit chicago.suntimes.com.