An Islandia man was arrested Thursday for allegedly trying to kill a woman and her daughter because they are Muslims.

Police say 23-year-old Joseph Ballance verbally threatened the women, who were clothed in Muslim dress, spit on their car, shouted anti-Muslim slurs and then tried to run them over. It happened at a Hess gas station in Smithtown last week.

The women took down Ballance?s license plate number, which lead to his arrest. Police say his rant against Muslims continued even after they cuffed him. Local authorities have reported the incident to the state as a hate crime.