A sign outside a Grand Junction mosque was defaced earlier this week and now Grand Junction police are searching for who is responsible.

The Two Rivers Mosque sign had been unveiled just three weeks earlier and church officials found it covered in black paint, as well as the damage to the landscaping around the sign.

The sign, which contains the name of the mosque in both English and Arabic was discovered by Abdelghani Essaifi, the vice-president of the mosque, but he said it didn't surprise him all that much. According to security recordings, one person spent about seven minutes defacing the sign and vandalizing the area around it.

Grand Junction Police Chief Doug Shoemaker says they are doing all they can to identify the suspect and bring him or her to justice.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations is calling on authorities to investigate this as a hate crime.

A Go Fund Me page has been set up for the mosque to help purchase a new sign. So far $4,500 has been raised.

 

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