MIDDLEBURG, Fla. — Investigators are looking into two vacant house fires in Clay County that they deemed suspicious.
Sheriff Michelle Cook said messages of hate were left behind at the scene. She also mentioned the fires happened almost at the same time.
The vacant houses were newly built and for sale in the 1500 block of Sharon Lane and on Conifer Circle. Both homes are in rural neighborhoods and less than 10 minutes from each other.
Authorities were called to the house on Conifer Circle around 10:30 Monday morning. Records show the deputies were on the lookout for a white van leaving the scene. One neighbor, who didn't want to be identified, shared with First Coast News a picture of the sign as deputies confiscated it.
One could see a swastika drawn on the sign. They said it read "This is our land. Latinos are not welcome. F*** you."
"My kids play in this neighborhood every day," the resident said. "Now my kids will not leave the yard. I won't let them."
Lillie Pratt lives near the house on Conifer Circle. She recalled hearing an explosion. The veteran neighbor expressed how disappointed she was at the fact it happened so close to home.
"We can't find nothing better to do but sit around and hate because you come from a different nationality, or different color or different neighborhood," Pratt said.
Lyndsey Lloyd-Perry's childhood home is near the house that was heavily damaged on Sharon Lane. She said she was looking forward to having new neighbors. The smoke detector at that location was still beeping.
To Llyod-Perry, the recent events are a poor reflection of her Middleburg community.
"Nobody called for any of that to happen," Lloyd-Perry shrugged and looked back at the house. "It's uncalled for."
Cook said this is an active investigation.