(MENAFN) A 27-year-old man was sentenced Wednesday to one year behind bars after he deliberately set fire to a copy of the Quran outside a mosque in Villeurbanne, a town adjacent to Lyon, France.

The Lyon criminal court imposed a nine-month prison term, with an additional three months added due to a suspended sentence from a previous conviction, according to the a French news broadcaster. The man, who has been under psychiatric care, also received a two-year ban on entering Villeurbanne as part of his sentence.

The incident took place on June 2, when the man entered the Errahma Mosque, removed a Quran, and proceeded to burn it in front of the mosque’s entrance before quickly fleeing the scene. This act of desecration has intensified tensions in the local community and prompted a swift legal response.

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