Police: Baseball-Sized Rock Thrown Through Synagogue's Window
By: Molly Daly and Greg Argos
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Police are investigating after a Northeast Philadelphia synagogue was vandalized for the third time in nearly four months.
Police say a maintenance worker at Temple Menorah Keneseth Chai found a baseball-sized rock thrown through a stained-glass window.
Police are going door-to-door to find the suspects who are believed to be two juveniles.
The Tacony-area synagogue is just two miles from Mt. Carmel Cemetery, the Jewish burial ground where scores of toppled headstones were found in February.
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It has been the target of several acts of vandalism since December.
Someone shattered a sanctuary window at the synagogue just before the start of the service on Dec. 2. No one was hurt. On Jan. 6, eight windows were found smashed. Rabbi Robyn Frisch says this time, the vandal was seen.
"It was captured on security cameras that we purchased," Frisch said, "and someone threw the rocks through at 5:04 p.m. on Sunday."
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Frisch says the atmosphere that breeds this kind of act is poisonous.
"We live in a time right now where we hear of incidents like this happening," she said. "I'd just really like to all be able to stand up against this kind of hatred, for whoever is doing it, for them to just please put an end to it. It's really not accomplishing anything. And it's just really hurting people in the community in many ways."
Police said they believe the latest incident is related to the two previous cases.
The juveniles involved were seen on surveillance video.
Police do not believe the vandalism is a hate crime.
"It just seems to be two kids, one is riding a bike, and they stop and they get the rocks from where they get them and they start hauling rocks and flee," said Philadelphia Police Lt. Dennis Rosenbaum.
The juveniles face possible charges of vandalism for all three incidents. Police say the district attorney will determine the charges.
No injuries were reported.
