Berkeley Antisemitic Hate Crime Spree Probed

BERKELEY, CA —An antisemitic hate crime suspect was arrested in connection with multiple incidents, the Berkeley Police Department said.

The first of three reported incidents that occurred within a 24-hour period was reported in the early morning hours of April 29.

Between the hours of 4 and 6 a.m. that day the suspect vandalized a private residence on the 2500 block of Warring Street with graffiti referencing those of Jewish faith and also destroyed a Jewish religious artifact, police said.

Between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. the suspect was seen vandalizing a Jewish synagogue on the 1300 block of Oxford Street with antisemitic writing, destroying religious artifacts and also by leaving a handmade reverse swastika, police said.

On April 30 surveillance cameras captured video of the suspect burglarizing a Jewish community center on the 2700 block of Bancroft Way between around 2:30 and 4:30 a.m., police said.

During the burglary the suspect wrote several bizarre messages in English and Hebrew that referenced Judaism, rearranged some items into shrines and also took some items, police said.

A review of surveillance recordings of the incidents helped investigators identify the suspect, who police said is a 39-year-old man with no known address.

On May 3 officers spotted the suspect in Civic Center Park and arrested him on suspicion of burglary and defacing/destroying property for the purpose of intimidating/interfering with the free exercise of any right/privilege secured to the person by the Constitution, which is considered a hate crime, police said.

A hate crime is a crime against a person, group, or property motivated by the victim’s real or perceived protected social group

“The Berkeley Police Department recognizes and places a high priority on the rights of all individuals guaranteed under state and federal law,” police said in a statement.

“The commission of a hate crime is a serious offense, which will not be tolerated in the City of Berkeley.”

For more information about hate crimes and how to report such incidents visit the California Attorney General’s website.