Threats Made Against Passaic County Mosque Of NYC Terror Suspect

PASSAIC COUNTY, NJ — The local chapter of America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization called on law enforcement officials Thursday to investigate threats made to a mosque that Sayfullo Saipov, the suspect in the New York City terror attack Tuesday, may have worshipped at.

The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called on state and federal law enforcement authorities to investigate telephone threats made to Masjid Omar Mosque in Paterson.

The Mosque received verbal threats on the phone after word spread that Saipov may have worshipped there.

Eight people, including a New Milford man, were killed and 15 were wounded Tuesday after Saipov reportedly took a Home Depot truck he rented in Passaic County and ran over the people while they rode on a bike ride on Manhattan's West Side.

An undated photo provided by St. Charles County Department of Corrections via KMOV shows Sayfullo Saipov. (St. Charles County Department of Corrections/KMOV via AP)

“We urge local, state and federal law enforcement authorities to treat this and all the other cases of threats and violence targeting American mosques with the seriousness they deserve and to bring the perpetrators to justice,” said CAIR New Jersey Executive Director Jim Sues. “We ask that law enforcement officials be especially vigilant at a time when the risk of backlash against the Muslim community is most severe.”

Paterson Police would not divulge what the exact threats were and would not say whether there was any evidence that the threats were credible, NorthJersey.com reported.

Police informed the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office and the United States Department of Homeland Security of the threats, Paterson Police Director Jerry Speziale said in the report.

Passaic County Prosecutor Camelia Valdez has not released any information about the threats. Neither Speziale nor a representative from the prosecutor's office could be immediately be reached for comment.

Saipov has lived in a garden-style apartment near the mosque for months, according to authorities. He was shot by a New York City police officer following the attack.

Prosecutors say that he had started planning the attack more than a year ago and that he decided to use a truck so he could cause "maximum damage against civilians."

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