Florida Holocaust Museum Hit by Break-In — No Damage to Displays
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
— A 23-year-old man who broke into the Florida Holocaust Museum did not damage any of the displays or steal anything.
St. Petersburg Police arrested Christopher Michael Venegas early Sunday morning, according to local reports. Surveillance camera footage at the museum in the central Florida city showed Venegas breaking an electronic keypad and call box, which sent a signal to the police, who arrived minutes later.
Venegas was charged with one count of commercial burglary and was later released on $5,000 bail. He refused to talk to police, according to WFTS Tampa Bay.
The museum praised the police for their quick response.
“In the past few years, local grants from Homeland Security have allowed us to begin upgrading our security systems,” its executive director, Elizabeth Gelman, said in a statement. “Those security measures — and the quick response from the St. Petersburg Police — assisted in keeping damage to the minimum.”
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.
