Police probing incident at Hicksville mosque as possible bias attack

The congregants at Faizan-e-Aisha Masjid on Heitz Place say the two incidents were disturbing.

News 12 Staff

Aug 27, 2021, 7:37 PM

Updated 1,208 days ago

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Congregants at a Hicksville mosque that was vandalized multiple times this month are calling the incidents a hate crime.
The congregants at Faizan-e-Aisha Masjid on Heitz Place say the two incidents were disturbing.
Video from one of the incidents on Aug. 13 shows a man with a shovel dumping what they say was dirt all over the front door entrance, which is where congregants take off their shoes to enter the mosque. The congregants say the man who they believe is the same person from the video then showed up after the Kabul attacks and stood outside saying something about a bomb.
"I believe what his words were, were 'don't bomb us,' which obviously it's a ridiculous comment," says Tahmeed Kalam, of Hicksville. "Since 9/11, so you're talking about 20 years now, the Muslim community has faced a lot of backlash in America for things that have nothing to do with us."
Dozens of members of the congregation gathered inside to pray and discuss the recent events Friday. One of the members says they are going through a lot because some of the congregation lost loved ones in Thursday's attack in Afghanistan.
A Nassau police spokesman tells News 12 that the incident two weeks ago that was captured on camera wasn't reported until yesterday. Police are now investigating it as a possible bias attack.