Feds investigate fire at site of future Tennessee mosque

Dan Gilgoff
CNN

[cnn-photo-caption image=http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/US/08/29/tennessee.mosque.site.fire/story.mosque.fire.wtvf.jpg caption="Saturday's fires destroyed an earth mover and damaged other vehicles at the Murfreesboro, Tennessee site." width=300 height=169]

(CNN) - Suspected arson at the future site of a mosque in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, has "really raised the fear factor" among area Muslims, a representative of the mosque told CNN on Monday.

The Saturday morning blaze destroyed an earth mover and damaged three other vehicles at the future site of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro, said Camie Ayash, a spokeswoman for the center. The fire is under investigation, but "you can reasonably make the assumption" that it was deliberately set, FBI Assistant Special Agent Keith Moses said Sunday.

"The evidence is being analyzed to see what the origin of the fire was," said Moses, with the FBI's Nashville, Tennessee, bureau. "We have to follow the facts."

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