By COLlive reporter
Two teens have been arrested for a hate crime committed at the home of the Chabad Shluchim in Bonita Springs, Florida.
The incident occurred on January 31, when Rabbi Mendy Greenberg, Director of Chabad of Bonita Springs, returned home to find that his mailbox was vandalized, a vehicle near his home had its window shattered, and the word “Jews” was spraypainted in orange across his driveway.
At a press conference Friday morning, Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno announced that detectives had identified two suspects in the case, and had quickly located them and arrested them.
Detectives identified a 17-year-old and a 14-year-old as the perpetrators of the crime, and both were arrested with a first-degree misdemeanor, which was enhanced to a felony due to it being a hate crime.
“This behavior sickens me,” said Sheriff Marceno. “Sadly, hatred towards the Jewish people still exists today. Violence or discrimination based on hatred of any kind toward anyone is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in my county,” he said.
Rabbi Greenberg thanked the police for their speed in solving the case.
“I have been living here for 17 years, and have never experienced anything of this sort,” Rabbi Greenberg said.
“While it is obviously a minority, it also stains the entire community. It is important that we increase in acts of goodness and kindness to combat and chase away that feeling of negativity and darkness. It really changes the reality – in a dark room, one little candle makes all the difference.
“If people of all faiths and backgrounds will increase in random acts of goodness and kindness, that is what will come to the surface,” he said.
To the Jewish community, Rabbi Greenberg said: “There is nothing to be fearful for. We are here to stay, we are safe and it is important for us to express our pride. It is important to put up a Mezuzah on your door, if you don’t have one, we can help you with that.”
He also reminded to light the Shabbos candles tonight to add in light. “One little candle can dispel all this violence,” he said.
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Thnak you thank you!!! for turning this ugly event into a one of light.
We love you CMG😘
Jews with an apostrophe 🤦🏻♂️
Clearly uneducated bunch
Jew’s? What’s with the apostrophe
Without them realising it,
The apostrophe means that it belongs to the Jews.
The whole world is ours to purify. Refine and elevate.
A real Chossid Rabbi Greenberg has impacted many lives in such a beautiful way as the Sheriff said “ he is a beloved holy man”
Anyone who has passed thru or stayed in his daled amot has certainly left with a feeling of warmth and inspiration from the Greenbergs.
The police did a great job