Bellevue Mosque Fire Was Arson: Police

BELLEVUE, WA - Bellevue police confirmed at a Saturday press conference that the early-morning fire at the Islamic Center of Eastside was intentionally set, and said that the man arrested in connection with the fire has been arrested at the mosque before.

Police arrested Isaac Wayne Wilson, 37, near the scene of the fire Saturday. Bellevue Chief Steve Mylett said police decided to arrest Wilson after statements he made and after reviewing surveillance video of the scene. Mylett said that Wilson was arrested at the mosque last summer on assault charges. According to police records, there was an incident of intimidation at the mosque on Jan. 6.

Wilson is being held in jail on suspicion of second-degree arson, but also on a warrant out of Seattle for malicious harassment, Mylett said.

The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms are assisting Bellevue detectives in the investigation. Mylett said that he does not believe the mosque attack was a coordinated act of terror. However, officials did not rule out hate-crime enhancements to any charges that stem from the fire.

Fire Chief Mark Risen said the fire was first reported at 2:44 a.m. Saturday. When fire crews arrived, they found the rear part of the building engulfed in flames. Once firefighters contained the flames, they moved inside to stop the fire from spreading and to search for victims. No one was inside the building, and no injuries were reported.

Firefighters, however, were able to save a number of religious artifacts from the mosque from burning.

The Islamic Center of Eastside is located along the 14700 block of Main Street.

The mosque posted a message on its website early Saturday about the fire, saying that the facility was out of service.

"As Salaaam Aleikum, There was a fire on the backside of the Belleuve Masjid (the Islamic Center of Eastside). The fire started at around 3:00 AM on Saturday(1/14/2017). The Masjid cannot be used until further notice," the message read.

The mosque has been in Bellevue for about 14 years, according to its website.

The Muslim Association of Puget Sound mosque in Redmond has been targeted by vandals in recent months. A sign outside the mosque was smashed before Christmas, the second such sign-smashing in two months there. Last week, police departments met with members of the local Muslim community about safety.

At the press conference, Mayor John Stokes called the fire "cowardly," and said that it was not representative of the Bellevue community.

"A cowardly act of one individual has impacted a house of worship and it has impacted our community" Stokes said. "We want our Muslim brothers and sisters to know we stand with them."

Images via the Bellevue Fire Department