A noose found hanging from a tree in Montgomery Village, Maryland, has prompted an investigation, police said.

Officials received a call Thursday morning from someone who discovered what appeared to be a noose hanging from a tree, CBS affiliate WUSA-TV reports.

Pictures from the scene show officials removing the noose from the tree.

Officials remove a noose hanging from a tree in Montgomery Village, Md., on Thu., June 15, 2017. WUSA-TV

The station adds that this isn't the first time a noose was found in the area. Two men were arrested in May after they hung a noose outside a middle school, WUSA reports. At the time, it sparked a lot of concern from police and the community.

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Recently, nooses were found inside the National Museum African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) and the Hirshhorn Museum in D.C.

NMAAHC Founding Director Lonnie Bunch released a statement via Twitter in May saying "the noose has long represented a deplorable act of cowardice and depravity" and that the "incident is a painful reminder of the challenges that African Americans continue to face" and "was a horrible act."

Meanwhile, hate crimes in the U.S. are on the rise, up 6 percent in 25 of the largest cities in 2016, according to the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University. African Americans are the most common target of hate crimes at nearly 30 percent, according to FBI statistics.