New York Jews Reeling After Synagogue Attack, Hate Crime Charges

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

NEW YORK, USA (Worthy News) – New York’s Jewish community was reeling Sunday as a judge ordered a man held on bail after prosecutors said he admitted to disrupting Shabbat services at Manhattan’s Central Synagogue and assaulting two people there.

The attack led to hate crime charges, with the suspect citing religious and racial motives for his alleged actions, prosecutors said, amid persistently high levels of antisemitic incidents in America’s largest city.

Larry Montes, 46, of the Bronx, was arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court after authorities said he disrupted Friday evening services, assaulted a congregant, damaged synagogue property and attacked a security team member.

“As synagogue security was escorting him out, he struck a member of the congregation, damaged synagogue property, and then spit at and head-butted a member of the security team,” Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.

An off-duty police sergeant who had been hired to provide security at the synagogue immediately detained Montes, and authorities said neither victim was seriously injured.

HATE CRIME CHARGES

Montes faces two counts of assault as a hate crime and one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime, among other charges, authorities said.

At his arraignment, prosecutors said Montes admitted that his actions were religiously motivated and expressed hostility toward Jews as well as racial animus toward Black people.

Prosecutors said he called Jewish worshippers “swine” and “fake Jews” after his arrest and allegedly used antisemitic language during the attack.

Judge Janice Chen set bail at $10,000 cash or $30,000 bond, less than prosecutors had requested, and issued protection orders for the victims. Montes was due back in court Thursday.

The attack unfolded during a livestreamed Shabbat service at Central Synagogue on Lexington Avenue, one of New York’s prominent Jewish congregations.

LEADERS CONDEMN ATTACK

Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who took office in January, called the assault “horrifying.”

“Every New Yorker must be able to observe their religion without fear of violence,” Mamdani said on social media.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul, state Attorney General Letitia James and Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer were among other political leaders condemning the attack.

Additional police security was deployed around Central Synagogue, but congregants returned Saturday and Shabbat services continued.

“We might want to be focusing on the beauty of our liturgy and the sanctity of Shabbat, and somehow the feeling of the imperfect and cruel world keeps flooding in,” Rabbi Rebecca Thau told congregants.

JEWISH COMMUNITY ON EDGE

The attack came amid concern about antisemitism in New York City, which has the largest Jewish population of any American city.

A major 2023 Jewish community study estimated that about 960,000 Jews live in New York City.

The community has continued to be disproportionately targeted by hate crimes. During the first seven months of 2026, police recorded 205 anti-Jewish hate crimes, compared with 189 during the same period last year—an increase of 8.5 percent.

The increase stands in contrast to broader crime trends. The New York Police Department said New York recorded its fewest murders, shooting incidents and shooting victims on record for the first seven months of 2026.

Anti-Jewish offenses accounted for 56.9 percent of confirmed hate crimes during those seven months, despite Jewish New Yorkers comprising about 10 percent of the city’s population, according to police.

ANTISEMITISM REMAINS HIGH

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) recorded 1,160 antisemitic incidents across New York state in 2025, more than any other U.S. state and roughly twice the number recorded in 2022.

Of those, 860 occurred in New York City, representing 74 percent of the statewide total.

The statewide 2025 figure represented a 19 percent decline from 2024, but the ADL said antisemitism remained at historically elevated levels. Nationally, 2025 was the third-highest year for antisemitic incidents since the organization began tracking them in 1979.

Violence remained a particular concern. New York recorded 90 antisemitic assaults in 2025, the highest number ever documented in the state, with 85 of them occurring in New York City.

While these figures show that New York’s antisemitism crisis predates Mamdani’s mayoralty, confirmed anti-Jewish hate crimes have increased during his first seven months in office.

MAMDANI FACES SCRUTINY

Mamdani’s outspoken criticism of Israel has drawn scrutiny from Jewish leaders and other critics, some of whom argue his rhetoric has contributed to a climate in which antisemitism has become more difficult to confront.

However, Mamdani, New York City’s first Muslim mayor, says he condemns antisemitism and has retained the Mayor’s Office to Combat Antisemitism.

In February, he appointed Phylisa Wisdom as the office’s executive director, saying her appointment would advance citywide efforts to confront antisemitism and protect Jewish New Yorkers.

Yet the latest violence added to anxiety among Jewish New Yorkers already confronting elevated levels of harassment, vandalism and physical violence.

Despite these difficulties, ongoing services at Central Synagogue highlighted what Jewish representatives viewed as a determination not to allow antisemitic intimidation or violence to prevent Jews from openly practicing their faith in one of America’s most vibrant cities.

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