{"id":324402,"date":"2026-08-18T22:10:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T22:10:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/324402\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T22:10:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T22:10:10","slug":"man-accused-in-manhattan-synagogue-attack-charged-with-federal-hate-crimes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/324402\/","title":{"rendered":"Man accused in Manhattan synagogue attack charged with federal hate crimes"},"content":{"rendered":"

A man arrested for attacking multiple people during Shabbat service at Midtown\u2019s Central synagogue<\/a> is now facing federal hate-crime charges, officials said Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Larry Montes, 46, was charged with two counts of committing hate crimes and one count of damage to religious property resulting in bodily injury for Friday\u2019s attack, according to the Manhattan U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison if convicted on the top charge.<\/p>\n

The attack at Central Synagogue, part of which was caught on a livestream of the temple\u2019s Shabbat service, outraged Jewish leaders and public officials, including Mayor Mamdani, who said he was \u201chorrified\u201d to learn of the attack.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur administration will always stand against bigotry in all its forms,\u201d the mayor said. \u201cWe will use every tool at our disposal to confront antisemitism and keep Jewish New Yorkers \u2014 and all New Yorkers \u2014 safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Simon Wiesenthal Center, an international Jewish human rights organization, said attacks like this are caused when antisemitism is ignored and is \u201cdismissed as exaggeration\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor Jews in New York, the sanctuary of the synagogue is meant to be a refuge, not a place where faith and fear are forced into uneasy proximity,\u201d the organization said in a statement. \u201cViolence on Shabbat is never only about the victims in the room; it is an assault on the very possibility of Jewish life lived openly, together and without dread.<\/p>\n

Montes called congregants at Central Synagogue \u201cswine,\u201d referred to himself as God, and screamed an anti-Black slur at a security guard before attacking two people at the temple, cops said.<\/p>\n

He allegedly struck a 63-year-old Michele Anaberg-Poma, splitting her lip and sending her crashing to the ground, then yelled, \u201cF\u2013k you, n\u2014-r!\u201d at a 65-year-old Black security guard before spitting in the man\u2019s face and headbutting him, prosecutors said.<\/p>\n

Montes then tried to flee but security staff, an NYPD officer working a detail at the synagogue, and congregants stopped and restrained him, prosecutors said.<\/p>\n

Ananberg-Poma posted on Instagram the night of the attack, remaining defiant despite Montes\u2019 tirade.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou will not punch out our Jewish light. You will not stand and cause harm to our eternal light,\u201d Ananberg-Poma wrote. \u201cWe will continue to sing our prayers of peace, love, and joy while protecting the voices that lead us each week.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur beloved Central Synagogue stands for all \u2014 stands so tall, a light, a light truly for all,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Montes was sitting with the congregation at the Lexington Ave. synagogue near E. 55th St. during Friday\u2019s Sabbath service when he suddenly sprang up from his seat and stormed up the central aisle to the front of the synagogue about 6:10 p.m. toward the bimah, or raised platform where rabbis read the Torah.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am Hashem!\u201d he yelled, using a Hebrew word that refers to God, as he rushed the rabbi\u2019s platform, according to a criminal complaint.<\/p>\n

A video posted on X.com shows the congregation reacting in shock as he pumps his fist and rants, \u201cDo you know who I am?\u201d<\/p>\n

Two women performing a song by the front of the synagogue flee to safety as Montes reaches the bimah, spins around, and marches back down the aisle, this time escorted from behind by a security guard, the video shows.<\/p>\n

\"PolicePolice have filed hate crime charges against Larry Montes, who allegedly attacked two people at Central Synagogue on Lexington Ave. (Central Synagogue)<\/p>\n

Montes grabbed and threw two $10,000 candle holders to the ground, breaking them, and screamed at the congregation, according to prosecutors.<\/p>\n

But congregants at the Midtown synagogue didn\u2019t let the violence stop them from finishing the Shabbat service, according to Central Synagogue\u2019s senior rabbi.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a testament to the strength of our community that services resumed immediately, and we refused to let this disruption extinguish the spirit of Shabbat,\u201d Rabbi Angela Buchdahl and Jon May and Marcia Caban, the temple\u2019s respective president and executive director, wrote in an email to congregants.<\/p>\n

Montes lives in Mott Haven in the Bronx.<\/p>\n

His relatives called Montes a troubled man whose struggles have worsened since the recent death of his grandmother, who raised him.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s not a racist,\u201d Montes\u2019 cousin, who wished not to be named, told the Daily News. \u201cHe just needs help.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe hasn\u2019t been OK after our grandmother passed away,\u201d the relative added. \u201cSince he\u2019s been alone, he\u2019s been acting really weird. He\u2019s been talking to us in the family, saying (weird things).\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI told him to look for help,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The NYPD and Manhattan prosecutors charged Montes with state hate crime assault and criminal mischief charges after his arrest. At an arraignment late Saturday, a Manhattan judge ordered him held on $10,000 bail. He\u2019s currently jailed on Rikers Island, awaiting his next court date.<\/p>\n

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch called Montes\u2019 attack \u201cdeeply painful.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA place of worship should never be a crime scene,\u201d Tisch said on X Friday. \u201cI understand the sanctity of this space and its meaning for congregants.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCentral Synagogue is where I grew up,\u201d she said. \u201cIn joy and in sorrow, it has always been a place of comfort and peace.\u201d<\/p>\n

Montes\u2019 arraignment in federal court was pending Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn attack on a house of worship is an attack on the fundamental right to practice one\u2019s faith safely, and our office will work tirelessly to ensure the defendant is held fully accountable as we continue to protect all communities from hate\u2011driven violence,\u201d Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said as he announced the federal charges against Montes.<\/p>\n

Montes had been arrested three times for robbery in 2023 and 2019 before Friday\u2019s arrest, police said.<\/p>\n

He has two past misdemeanor convictions in New York \u2014 one from when he stole headphones from Best Buy and brandished a knife when security tried to stop him in 2024, the other from when he stole deodorant from a CVS store and punched a worker there several times in the head.<\/p>\n

By the end of July, the NYPD had investigated 205 confirmed antisemitic hate crimes in the city \u2014 16 more than this time last year.<\/p>\n

The number of antisemitic hate crimes in the city makes up nearly two-thirds of the 360 hate crimes investigated in the city this year, officials said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAntisemitism is real and it\u2019s increasing by the day,\u201d Sen. Charles Schumer (D-New York) added as he thanked the NYPD for the quick arrest. \u201cNo American, regardless of their religion, should feel unsafe in a house of worship. We must come together to ensure that no space is left for these types of antisemitic beliefs or acts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll New Yorkers and all Americans must be able to worship freely with no fear of danger for themselves or their families,\u201d Schumer said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A man arrested for attacking multiple people during Shabbat service at Midtown\u2019s Central synagogue is now facing federal…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":322116,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[262,263,266,85,267,75,84,83,9,24,264,12,63,261,265],"class_list":["post-324402","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-manhattan","tag-city","tag-county","tag-crime-and-public-safety","tag-latest-headlines","tag-local-news","tag-manhattan","tag-manhattan-headlines","tag-manhattan-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-county","tag-news","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-crime","tag-sub-county-region"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324402","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=324402"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/324402\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/322116"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=324402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=324402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=324402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}