Crime & Safety
12-Year-Old Arrested For Anti-Semitic Graffiti In Rego Park
Police arrested a 12-year-old boy Wednesday in connection to anti-Semitic drawings found last week in a Queens schoolyard.
REGO PARK, QUEENS — A 12-year-old boy was arrested Wednesday in connection to swastikas and other anti-Semitic graffiti found in a Rego Park schoolyard.
The NYPD's Hate Crimes Task Force charged the boy with aggravated assault, ABC News reported. The drawings were discovered Friday in the playground at P.S. 139, an elementary school in Rego Park, Queens. They have since been erased.
"The child was processed as a juvenile and released to his family," NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot F. Shea said in a statement on social media.
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On Fri, 2-22-19, anti-Semitic graffiti was found throughout a Queens playground. The NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force now have the suspect—a 12 year old male—in custody. Great job @NYPDHateCrimes No matter the face of hate, the NYPD, partnered with the community, has ZERO tolerance. pic.twitter.com/zfq5GIHiXa
— Chief Dermot F. Shea (@NYPDDetectives) February 28, 2019
The incident drew attention after members of the City Council's Jewish caucus shared images of the chalk drawings of swastikas and the phrase "Hail Hitler" on social media on Friday.
I am horrified, disgusted, and nauseated, to say the least, of what I have witnessed today. Nazi imagery and anti-Semitic slurs were drawn at the PS 139 Playground in Rego Park. I was on the scene today and most of the imagery has been washed away. Enough is enough! pic.twitter.com/vteXmlqQyk
— Karen Koslowitz (@CMKoslowitz) February 22, 2019
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