Hate crime shock — police arrest two teens after swastikas deface a children’s playground in a heavily Jewish New York neighborhood Residents woke up furious and shaken after dozens of swastikas were discovered scrawled across a local playground in New York City, a neighborhood with a large Jewish population. Police say two teenagers were taken into custody following an investigation that moved quickly amid community outrage. Parents described the scene as sickening, saying a space meant for children was turned into a symbol of hate overnight. Authorities are treating the vandalism seriously, calling it a disturbing reminder of rising antisemitic incidents — and a line that should never have been crossed.

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Cops arrest two teens for drawing dozens of swastikas  all over playground in heavily Jewish NYC neighborhood

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Police arrested two 15-year-old boys for allegedly scrawling dozens of swastikas all over a playground in a heavily Jewish Brooklyn neighborhood two days in a row.

One of the teens was charged with two counts of aggravated harassment and two counts of hate crime criminal mischief for the two-day spree. The other boy, who police said was the main graffiti artist, was charged with 41 counts of aggravated harassment.

The swastikas were painted across slides, handball courts and other equipment at Gravesend Park in Borough Park, which gets crowded with Jewish school children each day. The back-to-back vandalism unfolded earlier this week at the large playground at 56th Street and 18th Avenue.

slide with graffiti
Gravesend Park, often frequented by Orthodox Jewish children, was defaced with swastikas earlier this week.@StopAntisemites / X

On Tuesday evening, officers responded to a 911 call and found roughly 16 swastikas scrawled in red in the playground and handball court area.

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By late Wednesday morning, police answered another 911 call and discovered about 57 more swastikas in red, blue and yellow in the same part of the park, triggering the hate-crime probe and public outrage.

The antisemitic scribbling had been painted over by Thursday.

The teens are being charged as juveniles after officers, aided by a field intelligence officer, reviewed their social media accounts and picked them up at their homes, cops said.

Both boys had no criminal history. Police will not be releasing their names because they are underage, according to police sources.

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Two teens are in police custody for the offensive drawings.Gregory P. Mango for NY Post

City Council Speaker Julie Menin called the vile vandalism in the neighborhood “disgusting,” “deplorable,” and “unconscionable” when she and other community leaders visited the park Thursday.

“When we hear about a young person painting 57 swastikas, then we need to make sure that the schools in New York City and the city government is doing its job to educate young people about hate,” Menin said.

Security cameras outside the park helped detectives identify the young suspects, but Menin said more security cameras are needed inside the park.

The NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force was still investigating, according to Assistant Chief Charlie Minch, commanding officer of Patrol Borough Brooklyn South.

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Speaker Julie Menin called the hateful drawings “disgusting,” “deplorable,” and “unconscionable.”Gregory P. Mango for NY Post

Billy Soto, 14, was in the playground with his friends on Thursday afternoon and condemned the hateful graffiti.

“I think a lot of kids nowadays are in the wrong mindset. Some people think it’s OK, but it’s not funny,” Soto said.

Menin said the case underscores the urgency of her antisemitism legislative package, which includes requiring schools to address antisemitic and other discriminatory misinformation.

Her five-point plan, which she unveiled last week, would also expand Holocaust education, restore protest perimeters around schools and houses of worship, fund security training and support for Jewish institutions and create a dedicated antisemitism reporting hotline with data tracking to guide future policy.

Menin plans to move the legislation quickly through the Council. She expects the bills will be introduced next week on Jan. 29 and voted on Feb. 12.

While only about 10% of New York City’s population is Jewish, antisemitism accounts for roughly 57% of reported hate crimes, the speaker said, calling the disparity an “urgent crisis” and saying education is the key to stopping hate before it starts.

“It is disgusting, it is deplorable, it is unconscionable. And we’re not going to sit by and let this continue to happen,” Menin said.