Gary Nathaniel Moore has been charged with arson. (Harris County Sheriff's Office)
HOUSTON – A man who has been charged with arson in a Christmas Day fire at a Houston mosque told an investigator he worshipped there.
U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Special Agent Nicole Strong said 37-year-old Gary Nathaniel Moore of Houston was arrested Wednesday morning. She said officials don't know a motive but added there's no evidence that it was a hate crime.
Strong had said that the blaze at the Islamic Society of Greater Houston had "multiple points of origin." The fire caused major damage to the building, but no injuries.
Moore was being held in jail Wednesday on no bond. Court records didn't list an attorney for him.
A court document says Moore told an investigator he hadn't seen a fire before leaving the mosque.
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