The San Francisco Bay Area office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-SFBA), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed the arrest of a suspect in connection with multiple acts of vandalism at Masjid al-Tawheed in San Francisco during Ramadan.
The suspect, caught on surveillance footage, was reportedly involved in damaging the mosque’s property on multiple occasions, including breaking windows and defacing the mosque’s entrance. The arrest occurred yesterday when the suspect returned to the mosque, where mosque leadership engaged him in conversation until the San Francisco Police Department arrived and took him into custody. The suspect, 35-year-old Robert Gray, is awaiting charges of vandalism and the violation of civil rights through damaging the property of another.
In a statement, CAIR-SFBA Executive Director Zahra Billoo said:
“We are relieved that an arrest has been made in these distressing incidents. It’s important for our community to see tangible actions being taken to protect our places of worship, where everyone has the right to feel safe and secure.
“This arrest sends a clear message that hate-driven behaviors will not be overlooked and serves as a reminder of the ongoing challenges we face in combating Islamophobia at a time when CAIR has received the highest number of bias complaints in its 30-year history.
“We urge anyone experiencing discrimination or threats to report these incidents to law enforcement and to CAIR-SFBA’s civil rights department at 408 986-9874.”
Billoo also urged houses of worship to use CAIR’s Best Practices for Mosque and Community Safety guide, which contains security advice applicable to institutions of all faiths.
