Fri Jun 30, 7:01 PM ET

A burning cross left in an senior black couple's front yard in Volusia County, Fla., has prompted an FBI investigation into the apparent hate crime, according to Local 6 News.

John Biven, 75, said he returned to his Oak Hill, Fla., home located on Flamingo Road and discovered the 4-foot-high burning cross planted in a flower bed.

A family member, Jiles Smith, said the discovery has incited anger in the community.

"Nobody is afraid," the victim's brother, Jiles Smith, said. "Fear is the farthest thing. You can't frighten people who have been frightened and run off all of their life. Those days are gone forever."

Both black and white residents are appalled at the discovery, Local 6 reporter Tarik Minor said.

"Only hatred would make you do something like that," neighbor Peggy McMahon said.

The FBI has been called to investigate the crime, but local residents are performing their own investigation, Local 6 News has learned.

"Who would be running around burning crosses and things like that, but people who are uneducated and don't have common sense and are just plain fools?" Smith said.

Family members said they do not know why they are being targeted because several black families live along the same street, according to Minor.