(WWJ) More information has been released as tips are sought in a case of vandalism a Macomb County mosque.
CAIR-Michigan is now offering a $1,000 cash reward for information to an arrest and prosecution of the person or persons responsible for the alleged crime in Warren last week.
Members of the Al Ihsaan Islamic Center found five windows busted out when they arrived the morning of Saturday, July 11.
A hammer was left behind, according to Dawud Walid, Executive Director of the Michigan chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MI).
New in the case: A neighbor across the street from the mosque reported seeing a gray sedan driven by a white male speeding away from the scene at the time of the vandalism.
CAIR-MI yesterday also received a report of a white male driving a vehicle fitting the same description that was slowly cruising through the parking lot of another area mosque. The driver sped away from the scene upon being spotted by a security guard at the location.
Walid said he wants Warren police to investigate this as a potential hate crime.
"Because of increasing hate incidents targeting houses of worship and minority communities nationwide, we urge local, state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate this act of vandalism as a possible hate crime," said Walid. "Given the history of tense race relations and anti-Muslim incidents in Warren, it is important that law enforcement investigates this incident with the seriousness that it deserves."
Walid noted that there is a history in Warren of opposition to the establishment and expansion of Islamic centers, as well as incidents of other mosques being targets of anti-Muslim vandalism and threats in the same locality.
Anyone with information about this incident can call the CAIR-MI office at 248-842-1418. To contact Warren police, call 586-574-4700.
Metro Detroit is home to one of the largest Muslim populations in the U.S.