New Caney Buddhist Temple lit on fire by Molotov cocktail, arson investigation
NEW CANEY, Texas - The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office is searching for the person who threw a Molotov cocktail into a Buddhist Temple, sparking a fire on Sunday night.
Deputies responded to the Buddhist Temple in the 17000 block of FM 1485 in New Caney shortly before 10 p.m. for an arson investigation.
In surveillance video, you can clearly see the man walk right up to the window and throw a Molotov cocktail through a screen and the entire room goes up in flames.
"My heart is just broken," says Huyen Trang Buddhist Temple Director Suco Susan Nguyen.
After the man lights a jar of gasoline and throws it through the window flames erupt inside the Huyen Trang Buddhist Temple. A man who's a monk, who was an out-of-town guest sleeping in the room jumps into action and uses a rug to put out the fire.
"He just opened his eyes and he saw the fire burning," explains Nguyen.
The video shows members of the temple extinguishing the flames and then calling the police.
Then in the video, you see another monk grab a fire extinguisher to help put out the flames. Nguyen had been sleeping in her room in another part of the building.
"When I was asleep, I heard a big sound and when I woke up, I came in here I saw a lot of fire and smoke," she explains.
The temple director says she can't believe someone would target their sacred space.
"This is a peaceful place," Nguyen adds, and she says after such a hateful act she's now afraid in her own temple.
"Yeah, very scared now. Last night I could not sleep," Nguyen explains, and it's all because of the man who decided to carry out a violent, ugly act. His victims hope he's caught soon, so he doesn't hurt anyone else like this, but they say they pray he also finds peace one day.
"For him, he's not happy with his life. If he has a problem in his mind I'd try to help him too. (You would like to help him get over the hate that's in his heart?) Yes, yes, and I would like to ask him why did he do this," says Nguyen.
Do you recognize the man in the video? How about his clothing, characteristics, mannerisms, or any materials he used?
"It was like a mason jar that people use for canning, things like that. It was filled with gasoline, and it had a cloth material as the wick," explains Montgomery County Assistant Fire Marshal Kevin Bates who says this Felony Arson isn't considered a hate crime, yet.
"We're investigating it as an Arson. Once we get information on who the person is we will definitely investigate their intentions," Bates explains.
The Montgomery County Sheriffs Office released this photo of the suspect.
Nguyen wants you to take a good look at the man who set her temple on fire around 9:45 Sunday night. She believes he also set fire to a different building on their property a year ago.
"I think so. I think the two fires are connected," says Nguyen.
"We'll look at everything and determine if that other fire was related or not. This could have been much worse. Anytime a perpetrator does something like this, especially in the evening time when people are generally asleep, it could get very dangerous, very quickly," Bates adds.
The sheriff’s office released a photo of a suspect in the case. They described him as a white or light-skinned male, wearing a dark baseball cap, black boots, and carrying a backpack.
Anyone with information to contact them by calling (936)-760-5800 option 3 and referring to case number 23S000489. You can also remain anonymous by contacting Multi-County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-392-STOP [7867].
Authorities say the circumstances and motives behind the incident are under investigation.
"The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office and The Montgomery County Fire Marshal's Office take this case seriously. Religious freedom and the safety of all the citizens of Montgomery County, regardless of religious affiliation, is something both agencies are sworn to protect. This type of behavior will not be tolerated in our County. We will continue to aggressively work to bring individuals to justice who threaten those peacefully practicing their religious freedom," the sheriff’s office said in a news release. "We understand that incidents like these can cause anxiety and concern among our residents. We urge everyone to remain calm and patient as the investigation progresses."
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"As a community, we stand united against any act threatening the peace and harmony we cherish. We firmly believe in upholding the religious freedoms of our citizens, and we will continue to protect and respect these fundamental rights," Sheriff Rand Henderson said.