Police are hunting for at least four suspects after swastikas were spray-painted across multiple synagogues and residences in Queens overnight Monday, marking the latest wave of antisemitic vandalism to strike the city.
City Council Speaker Julie Menin visited Congregation Machane Chodosh in Forest Hills on Monday morning, where she found swastikas emblazoned on synagogue walls, garage doors, and nearby homes. Menin said worshippers arrived expecting their regular community gathering, only to be confronted with what she called "terrifying signals of hatred and threats of violence."
City Council members Lynn Schulman and Phil Wong accompanied Menin as she toured multiple targeted locations throughout the borough. In a statement, Menin confirmed she is coordinating with law enforcement on the investigation and that graffiti removal will proceed once police complete their examination of the vandalized sites.
Photos shared online show black swastikas scrawled across synagogue exteriors and a circled symbol on a residential garage door. The scale and coordination of the attacks suggest a pattern of deliberate targeting.
The incidents follow a similar occurrence in January, when two teenagers were arrested and charged with hate crimes after dozens of swastikas turned up on a playground in Brooklyn. That case prompted City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to issue a statement condemning what he called "antisemitic vandalism," saying he stood "shoulder to shoulder with the Jewish New Yorkers who were targeted."
Menin's office has been in contact with the New York Police Department, which is leading the investigation into the Queens vandalism. Authorities have not yet publicly identified the suspects or released details about how they plan to apprehend them.
Author James Rodriguez: "The brazenness of these attacks, hitting multiple locations in a single night, suggests either a coordinated group or an escalating pattern that police need to dismantle fast."
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