An empty police car parked outside a Florida mosque — intended to deter vandalism during Ramadan — itself was the target of vandals who torched it with a Molotov cocktail over the weekend.
Daytona Police Chief Mike Chitwood says a “ghost” car was stationed outside the Islamic Center at 347 S. Keech St. when someone set it on fire at around 2:30 a.m. Sunday, News 6 reports.
“We were in bed and I heard a ‘boom’ noise. It sounded like a window being broken and I thought it could be someone trying to break into my boyfriend’s car. So I looked out the window and didn’t see anyone near his car then I looked left and saw the police car was on fire,” a neighbor who did not want to be identified tells the News-Journal.
“The police car has been parked there since the Orlando shootings. They move it every now and then but it’s always empty. My boyfriend called 911 and it took so long before they got there that by the time they did the entire car was covered in fire. It took a bit to get the fire out.”
According to Chitwood, when police arrived, a note was left behind reading, “Black Lives Matter A. Sterling P. Castile F*ck the police,” referring to the two black men killed by police in Baton Rouge and St. Paul.
This is the letter police say vandals left on a Daytona Beach cruiser firebombed outside a Muslim mosque Sunday morn pic.twitter.com/n1HfMIaGPE
— Matt Bruce (@Matt_BruceDBNJ) July 18, 2016
Chitwood says the department has not yet confirmed that arson was indeed the work of a Black Lives Matter protester.
“I really do believe in my heart of hearts that we have a really great rapport with our community overall. They know that if there’s a problem, they can come and talk to us,” Chitwood tells the paper. “But there is a radical, small percentage that I think is trying to drive a wedge between all of us.
“If you notice what’s going on in America today, it’s like they’re taking a page out of ISIS. Find the disenfranchised folks that don’t want to fix things the right way, and have them be fanatical in their attacks. And it’s sad. Certainly not the world I want my grandkids to grow up in.”
Leave a Comment
COMMENTS POLICY: We have no tolerance for messages of violence, racism, vulgarity, obscenity or other such discourteous behavior. Thank you for contributing to a respectful and useful online dialogue.