Temple Beth-El synagogue in Hornell, New York. Wschloss / Wikimedia Commons.
Police in an upstate town of New York have charged three suspects accused of leaving white supremacist leaflets and stickers at churches and synagogues.
Aubrey Dragonetti, 31, Dylan Henry, 30, and Ryan Mulhollen, 27, of Hornell, New York, each face 115 counts of aggravated harassment, the Hornell Police Department announced Monday — one for each pamphlet distributed.
Police in Hornell first received reports of the offensive acts on Sunday, according to a New York Times report, when a leaflet promoting the “Aryan National Army” was found tacked to the door of Rehoboth Deliverance Ministries, a predominately black church. Later, they were discovered throughout the community, with another left at the Temple Beth-El synagogue on Church Street.
On Monday, police caught Henry and Mulhollen in the act, the Times continued, and later searched their home and arrested them along with their alleged accomplice, Dragonetti. Mulhollen and Henry already have criminal records, including convictions for burglary, drug, and assault charges.
Founded in 1946 during a period of Jewish immigration to upstate New York, Temple Beth-El was designated as a Historic Place by the US National Register in 2016.
Hornell Mayor John Buckley told the Times that the incident was “shocking” and insisted that “This is something that is not reflective of Hornell.”
“These are three misguided individuals who have hate in their hearts,” Buckley said.
Responding Wednesday to news of the suspects’ arrest, Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the Simon Wiesenthal Center said, “These incredibly important arrests are a signal to other bigots across the US that they will be held accountable.”
