NEWARK, N.J. (NewsNation) — An imam who was shot outside a mosque in Newark, New Jersey, on Wednesday has died from his injuries.
Newark Public Safety Director Fritz Fragé said police responded to a call of a man shot at South Orange Avenue and Camden Street around 6:15 a.m.
NBC News reports the person was shot at the Masjid Muhammad-Newark. A person who answered the door at the mosque told NBC New York the victim was Imam Hassan Sharif.
A motive for the shooting remains unclear. Officials did not report whether any students were inside the attached Clara Mohammad School-Newark at the time, as per the New York Post.
New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin said that while the investigation is ongoing, his office has no information to suggest the shooting was “motivated by bias.”
“At a time when bias incidents against members of the Muslim community are on the rise, we know that this act of gun violence will heighten fears and concerns in our State. This investigation is ongoing, but at this time we do not have any information suggesting the crime was motivated by bias,” a statement from Platkin read in part.
The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said in a post on X that it is gathering information on the shooting.
“We are deeply concerned about this incident and pray for the speedy recovery of the imam. Anyone with information about the shooting should immediately contact local police,” CAIR-National wrote.