MIAMI BEACH, Fla. -- An arson investigation is under way at a Miami Beach synagogue, prompted by evidence discovered by the rabbi.

Miami Beach firefighters were called to the Chabad House synagogue at 2401 Pinetree Drive at about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday to find the historic building, once home to the Miami Beach Women's Club, fully engulfed in smoke and flames.

The fire was out by the time the sun rose and Rabbi Zev Katz arrived. He found the inside of the building gutted. He took photographs of prayer books and prayer shawls tattered and burned.

Firefighters initially saw nothing to suggest arson, but the rabbi did, outside on the lawn. He found one of two rods that hold the synagogue's Torah, the holiest book of Judaism handled by congregants with ritual and care. It showed no signs of burn, though inside, the housing where it had been kept was destroyed.

The rabbi believes an arsonist stole the Torah and dropped one of its rods on the way out.

That discovery prompted fire officials to string crime tape around the building and begin a criminal probe into a possible hate crime.

State fire investigators brought in a dog specially trained to sniff accelerants.

"Now that we have this new information, we have to reevaluate what we have," said Miami Beach fire-rescue Chief Javier Otero.

The building is owned by Wolfsonian Inc. Chabad House has been renting it as a house of worship for about two years, having built its congregation in a camper as a mobile synagogue.

Congregants who heard the news of the destruction began showing up to see the damage and comfort each other.

The rabbi plans to hold Passover and Sabbath services Friday night in an open-air tent on the building’s front lawn.