Federal prosecutors have charged a New Jersey man with intentionally damaging religious property after authorities say he repeatedly rammed his car into the Chabad-Lubavitch world headquarters in Crown Heights earlier this year.
Dan Sohail, 36, was taken into federal custody Monday and is scheduled to be arraigned in Brooklyn federal court, officials said. A criminal complaint unsealed Monday accuses him of driving his vehicle into the synagogue’s side entrance five times on Jan. 28 during a memorial service attended by dozens of people.
The headquarters on Eastern Parkway serves as the global center of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement, an international Orthodox Jewish organization.
The charge, filed in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, carries a maximum sentence of up to three years in prison if Sohail is convicted.
According to the complaint, Sohail moved protective stanchions out of the way before getting back into his car and accelerating into the building’s doors. The impact knocked the entrance door off its hinges and damaged the front bumper of his car, the complaint says.
No one was injured, officials said.
Federal prosecutors did not describe a motive in the charging documents.
After his arrest by NYPD officers at the scene, Sohail told investigators he had previously visited the headquarters and had recently learned he had Jewish heritage, according to authorities. He said he lost control of the vehicle because of icy conditions and heavy boots, according to the complaint.
Sohail was not required to enter a plea on Monday because he is charged by complaint, but his attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf. His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
This story has been updated with new information.
