A fire broke out in a New Jersey Knights of Columbus building late Tuesday and witnesses and officials say it might not have been an accident.
Video from the scene shows shattered glass in the front of the building on Maple Avenue in Fair Lawn, where the fire broke out just before 11:30 Tuesday night. It was not immediately clear if the window broke because of the heat of the fire or if somebody threw something inside.
The building was vacant when the blaze broke out and nobody was injured, police said.
A witness reports smelling smoke and then hearing reports that somebody may have intentionally set the building on fire, but police have not confirmed the cause.
"They said earlier a window was broken in the facility and that the guy ran away," Jess Ritgers, of Fair Lawn, said. "He came back later and threw a Molotov cocktail into the building and then ran."
The fire was quickly brought under control, but the damage had been done. Grand Knight Michael Chiocchi said there is significant damage inside the Catholic charity building.
"It’s a mess. A lot of water damage. A lot of smoke damage," he said. "The office is gone and the bathroom is gone."
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Police in Fair Lawn confirm they are investigating who could be behind the fire. Around 4:30 a.m. investigators were seen inside the building looking into the cause.
