A 46-year-old man was arrested after allegedly disrupting Shabbat services at Central Synagogue in Manhattan, punching a congregant, head-butting and spitting at a security guard and damaging religious items in an incident authorities are treating as an antisemitic hate crime.
The suspect, Larry Montes of the Bronx, was charged with two counts of assault as a hate crime and one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime, according to police.
Man attacks congregant at Central Synagogue in Manhattan
The incident occurred around 6 p.m. Friday at Central Synagogue, a prominent Reform Jewish congregation at Lexington Avenue and East 55th Street in Midtown Manhattan, according to the New York Post.
Police said Montes entered the synagogue during services and at some point approached the front of the sanctuary, where he began behaving erratically and disrupting the congregation.
Security personnel intervened and attempted to remove him from the building. During the confrontation, Montes allegedly punched a 63-year-old female congregant in the face, according to law enforcement officials.
Gallery
Larry Montes was thrown out of the synagogue as he attacked an individual on August 14, 2026
(Photo: X/StopAntisemites)
He is also accused of head-butting a security guard and spitting on him.
Police further allege that Montes broke two candlesticks at the synagogue valued at approximately $20,000.
A New York Police Department sergeant who was at the synagogue as part of a paid security detail detained Montes and turned him over to responding officers, the Post reported.
The alleged suspect removed from the synagogue by NYPD
(Photo: from social media)
Video of the incident circulated on social media and appeared to show Montes shouting angrily and largely unintelligibly near the front of the sanctuary. The sound of an object breaking can then be heard as congregants react in alarm.
Montes is later seen being escorted down the synagogue aisle toward the exit while continuing to shout and wave his arms.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said she spoke with the synagogue’s rabbi after the incident and was “relieved that no one was seriously injured.”
Central Synagogue in Manhattan
(Photo: from social media)
“There are no known additional threats at this time,” Tisch said, adding that the NYPD had increased its presence around the synagogue.
For Tisch, the incident also carried a personal connection. She grew up attending Central Synagogue and described it as a place that had long provided comfort to her and her family.
“I understand the sanctity of this space and its meaning for congregants,” Tisch said. “Central Synagogue is where I grew up. In joy and in sorrow, it has always been a place of comfort and peace.”
“What happened there tonight is deeply painful,” she added. “A place of worship should never be a crime scene.”