NEW YORK (AP) - A 39-year-old man was charged with burglary and criminal mischief as a hate crime Thursday in connection with derogatory graffiti found on four Brooklyn synagogues, police said.
Emil Benjamin of Brooklyn was accused of scrawling graffiti with a marker pen in the early morning hours of Saturday. Police said he also entered one synagogue, damaged two cabinets and stole $20. It was unclear if Benjamin has an attorney to comment.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo directed the state police Hate Crimes Task Force to assist the New York Police Department in the investigation.
Benjamin was the victim of an anti-Semitic crime himself in 2011, according to the Daily News. He was stabbed after being subjected to anti-Semitic taunts on a Brooklyn subway train. Two men were charged with assault, but not a hate crime.
Benjamin was charged in 2016 with stealing four Torah scrolls during a synagogue burglary, the Daily News reported. The scrolls were returned and Benjamin got a conditional discharge after pleading guilty to petty larceny.
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