A Connecticut man has been charged with a hate crime after telling police he set a vehicle on fire because he didn’t like the owner’s Mormon faith.

The fire, which destroyed a 2022 Chevy Equinox, started just before 4 a.m. Monday outside a multifamily home in Torrington, police said.

Witnesses said they saw a man start the fire near the SUV’s gas tank and pointed authorities to the 22-year-old suspect, who lived nearby.

Police said the man admitted starting the fire and said he did it because he didn’t agree with the man’s religious beliefs and doesn’t like the Mormon faith.

He is charged with arson, criminal mischief, breach of peace and the deprivation of rights, a hate crime.

The suspect was being held Monday in lieu of a $250,000 bond in advance of his arraignment in Torrington Superior Court.