The FBI is investigating after police in Southern California say two mosques in the city of Hawthorne were vandalized with paint and a fake grenade was left in the driveway of one of the properties.
The Hawthorne Police Department says it received a report early Sunday that a possible explosive device had been left outside the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community Baitus-Salaam Mosque. Officers found a replica of a hand-grenade and the word "Jesus" sprayed in white paint on the mosque's metal gate.
The department says later Sunday it received a second call reporting the phrase "Jesus is the way" had been painted on the Islamic Center of Hawthorne's facade.
Authorities on Friday arrested 23-year-old Carl James Dial Jr., of Palm Desert, in connection with a fire at the Islamic Center of Palm Springs.
