NEW YORK -A Bronx man was charged with multiple hate crimes after he disrupted Friday evening Shabbat services at Central Synagogue in Midtown Manhattan, struck a congregant and headbutted a member of the temple's security team, the New York Police Department said.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch identified the man as Larry Montes, 46, in a post on social media late Friday. She said he was charged with two counts of assault as a hate crime and one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime, among other counts. Gothamist reported that he faces 14 charges in all, including trespass, harassment and disruption of a religious service.
The disturbance began shortly after 6 p.m. at the synagogue on Lexington Avenue near East 55th Street, CBS New York reported. Video from the congregation's livestream showed a man moving down the center aisle and shouting as worshippers moved out of the way. A security guard restrained him, and an NYPD sergeant working a paid detail at the building took him into custody.
A 63-year-old woman was struck, Tisch said. Montes also damaged synagogue property and spat at a security guard while being escorted out, she said. A law enforcement official told CNN that Montes has a history of mental health problems. Tisch said there were no additional threats.
Services continued Friday night and resumed Saturday morning. Rabbi Andrew Kaplan Mandel opened the Saturday service by telling the congregation that it was safe and that the community would not let anyone take its attention away from Shabbat, according to CNN.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he was horrified by the assault and that every New Yorker must be able to observe their religion without fear of violence. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James also condemned the incident.
Danny Danon, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, used the episode to criticize the mayor, writing on X that antisemitism is not confined to the past.
The case follows other recent incidents in the city. Weeks earlier, two men, one Jewish and one Asian, were stabbed on the Upper West Side; the suspect, Raul Morales, was charged with attempted murder as a hate crime. In May, vandals drew swastikas on synagogues, homes and a Jewish center in Queens.