Hate crime charges for Bronx man in attack on Manhattan synagogue during services, NYPD says

A Bronx man was charged with hate crimes after disrupting services at a midtown Manhattan synagogue on Friday night, according to the NYPD.

Larry Montes, 46, spit at and head-butted a 65-year-old security guard at Central Synagogue, at Lexington Avenue and East 55th Street, police said. He also struck a 63-year-old woman, causing cuts to her lips and right forearm, an NYPD spokesperson said.

Montes was charged with four counts of assault as a hate crime, two counts of assault, criminal mischief as a hate crime, criminal mischief, destruction of religious service, criminal trespassing, two counts of aggravated harassment and two counts of harassment. 

"I am horrified by the assault at Central Synagogue," Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in a Friday post on X. "I can only imagine the pain and fear an attack like this, during Shabbat services, causes for the congregation and for Jewish New Yorkers across our city." 

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said in a Friday post on X that Central Synagogue is "where I grew up."

"In joy and in sorrow, it has always been a place of comfort and peace," Tisch said. "What happened there tonight is deeply painful. A place of worship should never be a crime scene."

"What happened at Central Synagogue tonight is appalling," Gov. Kathy Hochul posted on X on Friday night. "Jewish New Yorkers have every right to worship openly, proudly, and without fear."

In a statement on Facebook, the synagogue thanked its security team and the NYPD.

At a Saturday morning service, Rabbi Andrew Kaplan Mandel spoke of the attack.

"We are OK. We are safe." Mandel said during a livestream of the service. "We are grateful to be here. We are grateful to our security team for supporting us. We feel so grateful for our community."

Mandel led the congregation in a series of three deep breaths — breathing in "peace" on the inhales, and breathing out three different sentiments on the exhales: "fear," "stress" and "pain."

At an arraignment Sunday, Montes pleaded not guilty to the charges against him, according to a court record. A judge set Montes' bail at $10,000 cash, or $30,000 for either insured bond or partially secured surety bond.

By Joshua Needelman

joshua.needelman@newsday.com

Joshua Needelman covers the Town of North Hempstead for Newsday. A Long Island native and University of Maryland graduate, his work has appeared in publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post.