By Michael Mortensen
THE LACONIA DAILY SUN
LACONIA — Laconia police on Tuesday said they are looking into a second incident of anti-Semitic graffiti at Laconia Public Library that appears to be virtually identical to the vandalism that was done in a section of Opechee Park over the weekend.
The vandalism at Opechee Point included spray-painted swastikas and has prompted a denunciation from the local Jewish community.
The congregation of Temple B’nai Israel said it considers the use of the anti-Semitic symbol to be an act of unchecked bias, wrote Ira Keltz, the synagogue’s president, in a statement sent to The Daily Sun on Tuesday.
“We at Temple B’nai Israel condemn all acts of hate, whether it’s against Jews, the LGBTQ+ community, or persons of color,” Keltz wrote. “Symbols of hate like those we saw spray-painted and carved over the weekend at Laconia’s Opechee Point Park have no place in our community.”
Police Chief Matt Canfield said Tuesday that the department had just learned that the damage at Opechee Point now appears to be the second instance of this kind of vandalism in the city in recent weeks.
Canfield said department was notified that much the same kind of defacing, including the spray-painting of swastikas, occurred in the park next to the Laconia Public Library about two weeks ago. He said library officials did not report the matter to police until Tuesday morning after they read an article about the Opechee Point damage in Tuesday’s Daily Sun.
“These acts appear to be very similar,” the chief said.
He said the department would now be looking at video from surveillance cameras at the library and other venues in the Main and Church streets area that might lead to the identification of possible suspects. In addition, he said that investigators are examining and analyzing caps from two aerosol spray paint cans taken from the Opechee Point scene for possible evidence that might lead to the identity of someone involved in the incident.
The crime occurred last Friday night as Jews were preparing to mark the high holy days — the 10 days between Rosh Hashanah — the Jewish New Year — and Yom Kippur, also called the Day of Atonement, devoted to atoning for sins.
“To have this incident occur right as we are celebrating the Jewish High Holy Days, it’s comforting to know we have the support of so many good people here in the Lakes Region, who are not afraid to speak out with us as one strong voice against anti-Semitism,” Keltz wrote.
Canfield said the department has had a camera in place outside the synagogue for about a week as a heightened security measure during the time when Jews mark their holiest and most solemn observances.
The Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish anti-hate organization which tracks hate crimes against Jews, says acts of anti-Semitism have become more frequent in the U.S. in recent years, with a 34% increase in such behavior in just the past year.
Instances of anti-Semitic acts in the U.S. had steadily decreased for about 15 years. But starting in 2016, they began to increase and now are triple in number what they were in 2015, the organization reports.
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