Man sets fire to memorial of slain Virginia teen Nabra Hassanen

A South Carolina man was arrested after setting fire to the memorial for slain Virginia teen Nabra Hassanen.

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A South Carolina man was arrested after setting fire to the memorial for slain Virginia teen Nabra Hassanen.

According to a spokesperson for the DC police, Jonathan Solomon was arrested on Wednesday morning after police were called to the site of the fire, though they said that “at this time, the incident does not appear to be motivated by bias.” Instead, Solomon was arrested on suspicion of kindling a bonfire.

–Teen girl found dead in pond after leaving prayer at mosque–

Hassanen, 17, was attacked when she was walking home with her friends after spending the night in prayer at her mosque for Ramadan early Sunday morning. While her family suspects that the fact that she was wearing traditional Muslim clothing made her a target, Fairfax County Police said that Darwin Torres, her attacker, appeared to be motivated by road rage rather than religious hatred.

Torres allegedly argued with one of the boys in Hassanen’s group before he chased them with a baseball bat an caught up to Hassanen, who he assaulted. Her body was found in a pond one county over, where she was assaulted a second time, and police are investigating whether or not she was sexually assaulted during one of the attacks.

A funeral was planned for Wednesday afternoon at the All Dulles Area Muslim Society Center, where Hassanen and her friends had been prior to the attack.

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