One man has been arrested in the vandalism of a Tucson synagogue as police continue to investigate a separate incident at a local mosque over the weekend.ย
Tucson police have arrested Dustin Wilkerson, 37, in connection with vandalizing Kol Ami Tucson,ย 225 N. Country Club Road.
Detectives identified Wilkerson as the suspect after reviewing video surveillance, police said. He was arrested on suspicion of aggravated criminal damage.
Police said Wilkerson was already in jail for assaulting an officer.
Meanwhile, the Arizona Chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations called for stepped up security following an assault and vandalism incident at the Islamic Center of Tucson, 901 E. First St.
Tucson Police Department spokesman Officer Francisco Magos said that on Dec. 25 shortly before 6 a.m. a group of men arriving at the mosque for morning prayer noticed two vehicles with men and women in the parking lot.
The men arriving for morning prayer remained outdoors staring at the cars, and the cars' occupants got out of the vehicles and said words and confronted the men and threw punches at them, said Magos. One man tried to separate the groups and was able to get his group of men into the mosque. During this, he was punched by one of the culprits and sustained a minor injury.
Magos said the culprits returned to their cars, but some came back to the mosque and threw a chair, broke a window and taunted the men inside the mosque to come outside. The assailants then left the property.
Mosque security camera video revealed that the group had been hanging around the parking lot for several hours prior to the assault, the CAIR-Arizona release said.ย
Tucson police continue investigating the incident and are working to identify the culprits. Magos said currently investigators have no indication that it was a hate crime. The culprits did not mention race, religion or use racial slurs. The group appeared intoxicated from the video, said Magos.
Anyone with information is asked to call 88-CRIME, an anonymous tipster hotline.ย ย
