Law enforcement investigating separate attacks on houses of worship in Middle TN

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Law enforcement has started investigations into multiple incidents connected to places of worship in Middle Tennessee.

In one instance, a man threatened a Tennessee mosque. In a separate case Thursday, someone started a fire outside a North Nashville church.

Investigators with the Nashville Fire Department (NFD) asked the public for help after surveillance cameras caught someone set fire to trash cans at the First Apostolic Church in North Nashville.

“Having investigators out here and seeing what happened — I won’t call it lucky. We were very blessed that it didn’t get on the inside of the building,” pastor at First Apostolic Church Dee Jay Shoulders said.

When fire crews arrived on the scene, the fire was still active and smoke was coming from the siding and insulation.

“[It’s] just unfortunate that somebody wants to do something like this to a church,” Shoulders added.

The NFD released multiple photos of a person of interest who was seen walking between buildings at the church, opening a trash can and setting the contents on fire. They were then seen walking away from the flames.

“It puts a resolve in my faith,” Shoulders said. “It means I think we must be doing something right for the enemy to think enough of us to try and burn something up.”

Shoulders told News 2 crews had already been at the church working to clean up the damage.

In a separate incident, the Nashville-based American Muslim Advisory Council (AMAC) released a statement thanking local and federal law enforcement for “apprehending a suspect who threatened mass violence against a local mosque.”

“We’ve had these types of threats before, but I think we felt relieved that the suspect was already in custody,” AMAC’s executive director, Sabina Mohyuddin, said.

According to federal documents, Gunner Fisher was arrested last month at his Stewart County home after the FBI received a tip from Meta. The criminal complaint showed photos Fisher took of himself. In one of the photos, Fisher was wearing a camouflage tactical vest and holding a rifle. During an interview with law enforcement, Fisher said he had a “fascination” with mass shootings.

“[We] know that we need to be more vigilant in times like these, but you’re always disheartened when you hear a threat like this,” Mohyuddin added.