Well, it’s official. The man who went on a stabbing spree in New York last week has been charged with hate crimes. Grafton Thomas stabbed five Jewish people in the New York City neighborhood of Monsey. Gov. Andrew Cuomo called this attack an act of domestic terrorism. Grafton had searched for why did Adolf Hitler hate Jewish people. He also had journals that spewed anti-Semitic beliefs, which prompted the hate crimes charge. Grafton entered the home of a rabbi last week and attempted to murder five people (via WSJ):
Federal prosecutors filed hate-crime charges against the man accused of a stabbing attack that left five people wounded during a Hanukkah celebration this weekend in Monsey, N.Y.
[…]
Grafton E. Thomas, 37 years old, appeared in federal court Monday afternoon. He didn’t enter a plea and remains in custody. He previously pleaded not guilty in state court to five counts of attempted murder.
Mr. Thomas’s family said in a statement that he is mentally ill and has a long history of hospitalizations. His attorney, Michael Sussman, released a statement from Mr. Thomas’s family late Sunday that said he hadn’t committed similar violent acts in the past and hadn’t been convicted of any crimes.
“He has no known history of anti-Semitism and was raised in a home which embraced and respected all religions and races,” the statement said. “He is not a member of any hate groups. We believe the actions of which he is accused, if committed by him, tragically reflect profound mental illness.”
Prosecutors said Mr. Thomas wore what appeared to be a scarf to cover his face and said “no one is leaving” when he entered a rabbi’s home and attempted to kill five people with a machete Saturday night. The injuries included a severed finger, slash wounds, deep lacerations and a skull fracture.
[…]
The federal complaint said the internet browser of the phone recovered from the car Mr. Thomas was driving showed recent searches including “Why did Hitler hate the Jews,” and “Prominent companies founded by Jews in America” as well as searches for temples in Elizabeth, N.J., and Staten Island.
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This attack is all part of a spate of anti-Semitic attacks that have occurred in the city. In November, in Borough Park, some teens hurled eggs at Jewish people. While not nearly as serious as attempted murder, it did prompt a hate crime investigation, which led to an arrest. New York City’s Jewish community is shaken up by the spike in anti-Semitic attacks, but they’re not sure what can be done to stop it. As one person told NBC News, you just learn to live with it. If the perpetrator was white, you’d bet the liberal news media would be more aggressive in trying to blame this on white supremacy and the Trump White House. Grafton is black, so watch this story become suffocated by a progressive pillow. In the meantime, it’s amazing watching the Left trying to twist themselves into pretzels over this attack and how to respond to it. Some liberal news outlets are saying this attack was possibly anti-Semitic in nature. It’s a joke.
Five people were stabbed at a rabbi’s home during a Hanukkah celebration in Monsey, NY Saturday night.
— Vox (@voxdotcom) December 30, 2019
The attack comes after a string of possible anti-Semitic attacks in the region. https://t.co/G8fobmDBDY
And here we go... https://t.co/fSDHEgpYHp
— JERRY DUNLEAVY (@JerryDunleavy) December 29, 2019
She locked her account. pic.twitter.com/zPKh3GJJNj
— JERRY DUNLEAVY (@JerryDunleavy) December 29, 2019
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