MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – A spokesman for federal arson investigators said today a fire that damaged construction equipment at the site of an Islamic center in suburban Nashville remained under investigation.
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives spokesman Eric Kehn said his department was working with the FBI and the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office to determine what happened at the site early Saturday morning.
“At this point, it’s still an onging investigation,” Kehn said. He declined to characterize the fire, which a spokeswoman for the center said appeared to have been set by someone who doused construction equipment with gasoline then set at least one truck ablaze.
Camie Ayash told the Daily News Journal the fire has frightened Muslims, who have been part of the community for decades.
“Everyone in our community no longer feels safe,” Ayash said. “To set a fire that could have blown up equipment and, God forbid, spread and caused damage to the neighbors there … When (officials) called me this morning, I started crying.”