MIAMI BEACH, Fla., May 23 (UPI) -- A man has been charged with setting a fire at an Orthodox Jewish synagogue in Miami Beach, Fla.
Mike Bracamonte, 49, was arrested Thursday, the day after the fire at Temple Moses, The Miami Herald reported. Police said he had not been charged with a hate crime, but they were trying to determine the motive for the fire.
The fire was the second incident in less than two weeks in Miami Beach aimed at a Jewish institution or leader. On May 14, Rabbi Aaron Rabin of the Jewish Learning Center found eggs and feces on his house.
Miami Beach police said that a surveillance camera showed a man using a cigarette to start the fire and then going outside to watch it. Detective Luis Alsina identified Bracamonte as a suspect by going door to door in the neighborhood with a picture.
Bracamonte was arrested last year in charges that included grand theft, which were later dropped. Charges were also dropped after a 2007 marijuana bust.
