Crime & CourtsVersion 2

Larry Montes Charged With Hate Crimes Over Manhattan Synagogue Incident; Case Undecided

Prosecutors and police accuse the 46-year-old of assaulting congregants and security at Central Synagogue during Shabbat services. He has only been charged; no court has ruled, and the case remains unresolved.

3 reports on this incident · first at Aug 15, 2026, 8:40 p.m. ET

By AI ReporterFirst reported Aug 15, 2026, 7:48 a.m. ETUpdated Aug 19, 2026, 3:52 p.m. ET

Larry Montes, 46, of the Bronx, New York, has been over an incident at Central Synagogue in Manhattan. The matter is at the charging stage only: nothing has been decided, no plea or verdict has been reported, and the case remains open and unresolved as described by every source below. The announcement date is in dispute. abc7ny.com and fox5ny.com reported the charges were announced on , the best-supported date; nbcnewyork.com reported , and justice.gov reported . The disagreement has not been reconciled. The case is being investigated by the New York Police Department and the FBI, with federal charges filed in the , according to justice.gov. As reported across fox5ny.com, justice.gov, nbcnewyork.com and abc7ny.com, the charges include Two counts of committing hate crimes, One count of damage to religious property resulting in bodily injury, four counts of assault as a hate crime, two counts of assault as a hate crime, criminal mischief as a hate crime, one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime, aggravated harassment, and criminal trespassing and other charges. On the presumption of innocence, the sources are worded differently and neither outweighs the other. justice.gov reported that the charges contained in the Complaint are merely allegations and that all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. fox5ny.com reported that the charges are accusations and Montes is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. Any sentence would follow a conviction that has not occurred. According to justice.gov, two hate crime counts each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, and damage to religious property resulting in bodily injury carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Accounts of the alleged conduct differ across reporting, and none has been tested in court. According to justice.gov, the government alleges that on Aug. 14, at a Friday night Shabbat service attended by approximately 375 people at a synagogue in Manhattan, Montes stood up and began shouting, struck and damaged two ceremonial silver candlesticks with gold accents, punched with a closed fist a woman attending services, and, while being handcuffed, directed a racial slur at a Black security guard, spat in his face and headbutted him near his left eye socket; justice.gov reported Montes also allegedly stated he planned to return to the synagogue at a later date. nbcnewyork.com reported that police accuse Montes of storming into Central Synagogue in Manhattan during a Shabbat service, confronting congregants, striking a 63-year-old woman in the head as he was escorted out, damaging synagogue property, and spitting at and headbutting a member of the synagogue's security. abc7ny.com reported that NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said that as security was removing Montes from Central Synagogue at 652 Lexington Avenue in Manhattan during Shabbat services, he struck a 63-year-old woman, damaged synagogue property, and spit at and headbutted a member of the security team. fox5ny.com reported that police said Montes entered Central Synagogue during Shabbat services Friday evening, struck a member of the congregation, damaged synagogue property, and, as synagogue security escorted him from the building, spat at and headbutted a security team member. Sources also describe Montes variously as of the Bronx, of the South Bronx, and of the Bronx, New York. As of the reporting cited here, the proceeding stage is "" and no outcome has been reached; readers should not treat any allegation above as an established fact.

Earlier reports

Aug 16, 2026, 11:25 p.m. ET
Bronx Man Charged With Assault and Criminal Mischief as Hate Crimes
Larry Montes, 46, of the Bronx, has been charged with hate crimes in a case announced on August 15, 2026.
The charges as recorded are two counts of assault as a hate crime, criminal mischief as a hate crime — also entered in the record as one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime — and other charges. Both wordings of the criminal mischief charge appear in the record and are reproduced here as given; the record does not itemize what falls under "other charges."
The investigating agency is listed as the New York Police Department, also given as the NYPD.
The record available for this report contains no description of the alleged conduct. The field for what Montes is accused of doing is empty. It does not state where or when the alleged offense occurred, does not identify any person alleged to have been harmed, and does not name any official or agency spokesperson who described the events. Accounts of that kind that may be circulating elsewhere are not part of the material this report is based on and are not repeated here.
The proceeding is at the charging stage. The record lists no arraignment or court date, no plea, no prosecuting office, and no defense attorney; it is therefore not known from this record whether Montes has legal representation or has responded to the charges.
The charges are accusations. Montes is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Aug 15, 2026, 8:40 p.m. ETFirst report
Bronx Man Charged With Hate Crimes Over Central Synagogue Incident; Case Undecided
Officials announced on August 15, 2026, that Larry Montes, 46, of the Bronx, has been charged following an incident during Friday evening Shabbat services at Central Synagogue at 652 Lexington Avenue in Manhattan, according to fox5ny.com and abc7ny.com. The case has not been decided. It is at the charging stage, and nothing in the available record shows any resolution.
Montes faces two counts of assault as a hate crime, criminal mischief as a hate crime, one count of criminal mischief as a hate crime, and other charges, the two outlets reported.
The matter remains undecided. No court has ruled on the accusations, no verdict, plea, dismissal or other outcome has been reported, and readers should not infer one. The charges are accusations, and Montes is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court, fox5ny.com reported.
Accounts from authorities differ on the sequence of events, and neither version can be treated as settled. According to abc7ny.com, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said that as security was removing Montes from Central Synagogue during Shabbat services, he struck a 63-year-old woman, damaged synagogue property, and spit at and headbutted a member of the security team. According to fox5ny.com, police said Montes entered the synagogue during Shabbat services Friday evening, struck a member of the congregation, damaged synagogue property, and, as synagogue security escorted him from the building, spat at and headbutted a security team member.
The investigating agency is the NYPD, identified in the reporting as the New York Police Department, both outlets reported.
As of the August 15, 2026 announcement, the only stage this matter had reached was the filing of charges. Anyone encountering this account later should treat the case as unresolved unless a subsequent, sourced outcome says otherwise.

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Revision history

Version 219 Aug 2026, 19:52current
Moved the unresolved-status disclosure into the headline, dek and first sentence, and repeated it in the closing paragraph; added that no plea or verdict has been reported and that the maximum penalties would only follow a conviction that has not occurred. Printed the disputed announcement dates exactly as given (2026-08-15 lead, with 2026-08-16 and 2026-08-18 attributed in the same breath). Kept both presumption-of-innocence formulations attributed separately, kept all four conflicting conduct accounts attributed and unpicked, listed the charge variants verbatim, and added the variant descriptions of the defendant's residence. No facts added.
Version 116 Aug 2026, 00:29
First published.
Version 117 Aug 2026, 03:25current
First published.
Version 116 Aug 2026, 00:40current
First published.

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