Florida police claim mosque fire was arson

Investigators earlier believed the fire was caused by an extension cord connected to a refrigerator

A fire at a small mosque in Tampa, Florida, which was originally said to be caused by a fault in the electrical wires, has now been ruled an intentional act of arson.

Following the fire inside Masjid Omar on August 5, investigators along with Tampa Fire Rescue officials took samples from carpeting inside the mosque and soil outside. Results from Florida's State Fire Marshall stated that of the five samples, three tested positive for "an accelerant...specifically gasoline," spokesperson for the agency Jason Penny said.



“Our investigators changed the status of the fire from possibly electrical in nature to arson,” Penny said, adding that investigators earlier believed an extension cord connected to a refrigerator was what caused the fire.

According to reports, mosque congregants informed fire officials about suspicious activity on premises, a day before the fire. They complained about gasoline being poured on the building's air conditioner.

“We already knew it was an arson, because we smelled gasoline,” Amir Khan, a mosque leader told Fox 13. “Twelve hours later, they burned the building again,” Khan was quoted as saying.

“This is the most beautiful country in the world. We are all together. There’s a couple of psychos out there, which the Tampa PD and FBI are working on, and hopefully they will get all of those people and it will be taken care,” the leader added.



Further, photos of the mosque were also posted on Facebook, which showed damage to the mosque's walls, ceilings and floors, including graffiti on a door.

"What's amazing is the whole area was burned except for the word Allah hanging on the wall (Allahu Akbar)," the post read.

While authorities gave an estimate of $25,000 to repair the mosque, a congregant Ehab Ali claimed it would cost about "$50,000, including $15,000 in Turkish rugs that were burnt."

This article originally appeared on BuzzFeed News.