• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Vandals Target Uptown Temple: Police Investigating Spray-Paint Attack

Posted on: Tuesday, 14 February 2006, 09:01 CST

By Dan P. Blake, Chicago Tribune

Feb. 14--Chicago police were conducting a hate-crime investigation Monday into the spray painting of swastikas and anti-Semitic writings on a synagogue in the Uptown neighborhood, the congregation's rabbi and police said.

Rabbi Philip Lefkowitz, of the Agudas Achim North Shore Congregation, 5029 N. Kenmore Ave., said police contacted him about 4:30 a.m. Monday about a possible break-in at the temple. But because it was dark, they could not see the graffiti, he said.

When the rabbi's son came to the temple later Monday morning, he found swastikas and several anti-Semitic writings--among them "Mein Kampf,""Kill the Jews" and "White Power"--spray-painted on the outside windows, Lefkowitz said. A rope, apparently used to scale a wall, was left hanging outside the temple, but the building was not burglarized.

"Frankly, I was shocked," Lefkowitz said, "because this is a blight on the neighborhood of Uptown. Everyone has been working together in this neighborhood. This is a bizarre situation."

Police Officer Marcel Bright did not know exactly what had been sprayed on the windows, but he said police were notified of the graffiti at 11:16 a.m.

The rabbi said empty spray-paint cans were littered outside of the temple.

Lefkowitz, who has overseen the congregation for 10 years, said he would try to enlist the help of volunteers in the hope of cleaning up the graffiti before members come to the temple.

dpblake@tribune.com

-----

Copyright (c) 2006, Chicago Tribune

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.

Source: Chicago Tribune

More News in this Category