Antisemitic Graffiti Scrawled On Brooklyn Buildings; Suspect Caught On Video

BROOKLYN, NY — A cyclist wearing a fedora was caught on camera scrawling antisemitic graffiti, including a swastika, on buildings in Brooklyn, according to police.

Around 6 a.m. on Nov. 5, a man on a bicycle, dressed entirely in black, was captured on video approaching Magen David Yeshivah near McDonald Avenue and Avenue T in Gravesend, where he spray-painted swastikas across the front of the building, according to police.

Police said the suspect scrawled hate-filled antisemitic messages, including swastikas, only hours after Zohran Mamdani’s election as mayor.

The vandalism continued later that morning, when, just before 10 a.m., the same cyclist appeared near McDonald Avenue and Bay Parkway. There, he spray-painted swastikas on construction barriers outside Washington Cemetery before riding off, according to police.

"This is a disgusting and heartbreaking act of antisemitism, and it has no place in our beautiful city. As Mayor, I will always stand steadfast with our Jewish neighbors to root the scourge of antisemitism out of our city," Mamdani wrote on social media.

Police said they are investigating the newly reported antisemitism as a hate crime.

Last year, more than half of all hate crimes in New York City—54 percent—targeted Jewish people, according to NYPD data. During the first quarter of 2025, that figure rose to 62 percent, police statistics show.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/ , on X @NYPDTips.