New York City steps up police patrols after reports of anti-Semitic incidents

The New York Police Department is stepping up patrols in three Brooklyn neighborhoods after a surge of anti-Semitic crimes reported to the police in the past two weeks, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Friday.

Police officers are scheduled to patrol the streets of Borough Park, Crown Heights and Williamsburg, neighborhoods with large numbers of Jewish residents, where they also plan to visit houses of worship and other “critical areas in the community,” Mr. de Blasio added on Twitter.

“Anti-Semitism is an attack on the values of our city — and we will confront it head-on,” he said.

The announcement of the increased foot and car patrols comes as the police department’s Hates Crimes Task Force investigates eight “alarming” anti-Semitic incidents since Dec. 13, the police said.

The latest two reported to the authorities happened Friday — both in Crown Heights. Shortly before 7 a.m., a man walked into the Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters, approached a member of the Hasidic community and threatened to shoot someone, police said.

Earlier in Crown Heights, a little after midnight, a woman identified as Tiffany Harris, 30, slapped three women in the face, police said.

At a news conference

Friday afternoon, Chief of Detectives Rodney Harrison said Ms. Harris admitted to slapping the women because she believed they were Jewish. Ms. Harris has been charged with firstdegree harassment.

Despite the reports, Crown Heights was humming with pedestrian traffic Friday afternoon, with Hanukkah underway.

Cars and vans playing songs in Yiddish rolled up Kingston Avenue, where families ran errands before sundown.

David Lahainy, a Torah student at the Chabad Lubavitch headquarters, said he had noticed more police officers in the neighborhood.

“We need more,” said Mr. Lahainy.