A New Jersey pastor’s home was attacked after he opposed plans for a proposed mosque in the community.
Pastor James Basile said rocks were thrown through his windows after a board meeting on Monday night.
Pastor Basile has signs against the mosque in his front windows.
Permission for a long-planned mosque in Bayonne, New Jersey, was denied Monday after a marathon zoning board meeting
NJ.com reported:
A local pastor’s home was vandalized for the second time this year, shortly after the plan for a proposed Muslim community center was nixed at a special Zoning Board meeting earlier this week.
Joseph Basile, a pastor at Grace Bible Fellowship who has been an opponent of the Muslim community center, told The Jersey Journal that rocks had been thrown through his window sometime after the special Zoning Board meeting Monday night.
“The police are trying to determine when it occurred, but I’m not quite sure (exactly when),” he said.
Basile said the vandalism is likely due to his opposition to the center, which was voted down Monday night after a heated, five-hour meeting.
It is unclear if there are any cameras in the vicinity. Police could not be reached for comment.
This marks the second time Basile’s house has been vandalized. In January, the pastor’s house was vandalized with spray paint, as well as the road and snow nearby.
Basile had said at the time that the graffiti was likely directed at him because of signs in his windows that read “Save Bayonne” and “Stop the Mosque.”
Basile’s wife — in late 2016 — also reported that she had been threatened by a stranger at her home for the signs in her windows.
