Bogota, Sep 17 (IANS/EFE) Miscreants set fire to a Catholic church in the Colombian capital city of Bogota Thursday, authorities said.

Octavio Mora, the parish priest in the Galan neighbourhood church, said the blaze was apparently the work of ‘Satanic’ youths who have been making threats against his life.

Threatening graffiti had appeared on the walls and doors of the church recently, he said.

The miscreants made a pile of the church benches and sound system and set it ablaze before fleeing, authorities said, causing damage worth around $16,000.