Police, firefighters and hazardous material personnel arrived on the scene at 9:48 p.m., Friday, September 26, 2008.
The terrorist attack occurred during a prayer service attended by about 300 people.
In a proclamation defying all logic, Dayton police Chief Richard Biehl proclaimed that "There was nothing left at the scene or anything that makes us believe this is a biased crime."
The police Chief asks us to believe that this terrorist attack made upon Muslims on the holiest day of the Islamic week, during Ramadan, the holiest month of the Islamic year, in an Islamic mosque did not occur because of the Islamic faith of the Muslims gathered therein has no credibility.
The Dayton Daily News reports further that a police detective would be assigned to the case on Tuesday, September 30, since the crime occurred over the weekend and that the detective is to determine if a crime was committed.
Determine if a crime was committed? Spraying a chemical into through an open window into the eyes of a 10-year old girl? A chemical whose after affects included an irritated throat ten or more hours after it was originally sprayed? An act that inflicted tearing, coughing and shortness of breath upon people inside the building?
Determine if a crime was committed?
Is it because the Hazmat team was unable to identify the chemical?
"Whatever chemical was released it dissipated too quickly for us to determine what it was," [Hazmat team coordinator Denny] Bristow said. "We can test for about 130 to 140 chemicals, including pepper spray, and all our tests came back negative."
A review of crime statistics for Dayton shows an overall crime index about twice the national average, a violent crime index about twice the national average, and a property crime index slightly less than twice the national average. Perhaps the Dayton police are busy, too busy to handle this situation?
It most certainly looks like a hate crime to me. The mosque was targeted because of the religious faith of the Muslims. That is the simplest explanation. This terrorist attack was a hate crime, and should be treated as such.
