Manhattan synagogue attacker claims religious and racial motives in hate-crime case

At approximately 6 p.m. on Aug. 14, Larry Montes disrupted a Shabbat service at Central Synagogue in Midtown Manhattan, yelling antisemitic and anti-Israel curses and striking a woman in her 60s. The synagogue’s head of security intervened, and an NYPD officer placed Montes in handcuffs, yet he persisted in shouting slurs, including a racial epithet, and even spat on a black congregant. In a post-arrest interview, Montes told investigators the assault was “all religious motivated” and “a racial thing,” adding further hateful statements.

Prosecutors have charged him with two hate-crime offenses and one count of damaging religious property resulting in bodily injury, offenses that carry a potential sentence of up to 40 years. U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald emphasized the case as an attack on the fundamental right to worship safely and pledged to hold the defendant fully accountable.