NASHVILLE, Texas, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Vandals spray-painted terms like "Muslims Go Home" on the windows and walls of a mosque in Nashville as part of an apparent hate crime, police say.
Police said they are treating the act of vandalism at the al-Farooq Islamic Center as a possible hate crime due to the terms and crosses spray-painted onto the outside of the mosque, The (Nashville) Tennessean said Thursday.
Salaad Nur, a board member at the mosque, said the individuals behind the vandalism also left a note containing a message laden with hate-speech and expletives.
Nashville Metro Police Sgt. Brooks Harris said state and federal authorities will help investigate the vandalism.
"The key issue is, we're really looking at this together with our state and federal partners and doing everything we can to get to the bottom of this, prevent it, and if there's a solvability factor, we'll find it," Harris told The Tennessean.
Members at the Islamic center told WSMV-TV, Nashville, the vandalism likely occurred late Tuesday night or early Wednesday morning, since the graffiti was not evident Tuesday night.
