Smashed Car Windows Outside Chicago Synagogue Weren’t Hate Crime, Police Say

Image by Flickr: LukeGordon1

By Ben Sales May 23, 2019

(JTA) — The smashing of two car windows outside a Chicago synagogue was not a hate crime, according to local police.

A suspect has been arrested in the vandalism this week in West Rogers Park, a neighborhood with a large Jewish population.

It was among 14 similar incidents in the neighborhood that took place over the course of May.

Police apprehended the suspect after finding him smashing windows, Alderman Debra Silverstein said in an announcement Wednesday.

“As suspected, the vandalism does not appear to have been a hate crime,” her statement said.

The vandalism occurred at about the same time as an attempted arson attack on a synagogue in another Chicago neighborhood.

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