Chabad Rabbi on Scooter Chases Down Burglary Suspect in Palm Beach
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
A rabbi rode a motor scooter to chased down a suspected burglar after spotting him outside of a Palm Beach, Florida Chabad house.
Avrohom Ezagui, a Lubavitcher rabbi, became suspicious when he saw a man holding a bag of valuables, according to The Palm Beach Post.
Ezagui assumed the valuables had been taken from Chabad and gave chase on his scooter. A fight reportedly broke out when Ezagui reached the man, Eric Hanna, 28.
But Hanna had actually allegedly targeted a nearby home, not the Chabad house. He allegedly broke into the home through an open window and grabbed over $10,000 worth of jewelry, the paper reported.
Hanna was later arrested by police and faces two counts of burglary, one count of larceny of more than $10,000, one count of loitering, one count of battery and one count of criminal mischief. Bail was set at $87,000.
In 2011, the Chabad Palm Beach synagogue was targeted by burglars. Besides making off with valuables the crooks swiped a $1 that had been blessed by the late Lubavitcher rebbe Menachem Schneerson.
The synagogue offered a $1,000 reward for the safe return of the bill, but apparently got no takers.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
