NEW YORK (AP) - A New York City newspaper says it received an anonymous call from a person claiming to have discarded spoiled bacon in a park where Muslims had scheduled Ramadan prayers.
The caller said he was putting it out for seagulls and raccoons to eat, not as an anti-Muslim statement.
The Staten Island Advance said the message was left Tuesday on a reporter's voicemail.
The caller said "It was not any ... anti-Muslim act, and I did not want to offend anybody."
The NYPD is investigating the incident as a possible hate crime. It was informed of the call but declined to discuss it.
Three packages of bacon were found Sunday in a section of the New Dorp Beach park.
Muslims are barred from eating pork because pigs are considered unclean.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
