Synagogue, home targets of racist graffiti

Same vandal likely spray-painted both Taunton locations, police say

A Nazi swastika and words of hate were spray-painted on a synagogue and a private home in Taunton, and the city’s police chief is promising to prosecute those found responsible to “furthest extent of the law.”

In a statement, Chief Edward J. Walsh said officers responded to a private residence on Everett Street around 3:30 p.m. last Friday, where they discovered “racist graffiti” had been spraypainted onto a vehicle and a recycling bin. Around the same time, police were alerted to more instances where racist graffiti was spray-painted on property in the Bristol County city.

Officers were sent to the Congregation Agudath Achim of Greater Taunton, where they found a swastika “and other hateful references spray-painted on the side of the synagogue,” the chief said in his statement.

He said the same vandal appeared to have targeted both locations. “The handwriting appeared similar to that found at the Everett Street home,” Walsh said in the statement.

The investigation is ongoing, the chief said.

According to its website, Agudath Achim, on Winthrop Street, is now an unaffiliated Jewish congregation that has “been Reform in style and practice since the early 2000’s.” The congregation is “inviting, inclusive and accepting,” welcoming members of the LGTBQ+ community and those of different faiths, according to Rabbi Colman Reaboi.

“This certainly hurts,” Reaboi said in a phone interview. “But I know from my philosophy, Judaism is about repairing the world, so I believe that we should hold our heads high.”

Reaboi said that the synagogue’s security cameras had captured an unknown individual vandalizing the building Friday afternoon. Saturday morning, Reaboi discovered additional graffiti as he opened the synagogue for a bat mitzvah service.

“You know, having that in our sacred home was disappointing,” Reaboi said. “For our part, it was a very nice service, and a proud moment for us and that young woman. We won’t let hate acts of hate blow us down.”

There were five pieces of graffiti in total, Reaboi said, which included hateful epithets directed toward Black people and the LGTBQ community.

The congregation has yet to remove any of the vandalism, and is awaiting further instruction from police, Reaboi said. The swastika was painted directly below a Pride flag, he added.

“Right now, it’s an open sign of hate,” Reaboi said. “In our 115 years of history, this has never happened, and now, sadly, we’ve become another statistic of antisemitism and hate that is prevalent in Massachusetts.”

According to Reaboi, police have a suspect in the case.

“Taunton will not stand for acts of hate and intolerance, and we will call out these malicious and hurtful acts wherever we see them,” Walsh said in the statement.

“We will aggressively investigate these crimes and work with the district attorney to prosecute those responsible for these acts to the furthest extent of the law.”

John R. Ellement can be reached at john.ellement@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @JREbosglobe.

Kate Armanini can be reached at kate.armanini@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @KateArmanini.