
Fresh Meadows Man Charged With Hate Crimes in Vandalism at Jewish-Owned Bagel Shop
QUEENS, N.Y. (AP) — A Fresh Meadows man already facing manslaughter charges in a fatal traffic crash has been charged with hate crimes after prosecutors alleged he repeatedly vandalized a Jewish-owned kosher bagel shop displaying Israeli flags.
Dawood Faisal, 22, was arraigned Friday on a criminal complaint charging him with third- and fourth-degree criminal mischief as hate crimes, along with corresponding criminal mischief charges, according to Melinda Katz.
If convicted of the top count, Faisal faces up to seven years in prison. He was ordered to return to court on Tuesday.
Prosecutors allege Faisal targeted Bagels & Co., a kosher business on Union Turnpike in Fresh Meadows, on two occasions in May because it displayed Israeli flags and banners outside the store.
According to the charges, Faisal allegedly knocked over nine metal plant stands outside the shop on May 15, spilling dirt and plants across the sidewalk before throwing handfuls of dirt at the exterior wall of the business.
Eight days later, prosecutors allege he returned shortly after 1 a.m. and pushed and kicked 11 metal plant stands, emptied their contents onto the sidewalk and attempted to topple a large clay planter. When he was unable to knock over the pot, prosecutors said he pulled plants from it and other containers.
“As alleged, this defendant repeatedly targeted a Jewish-owned business and destroyed property in a vile act of antisemitism,” Katz said in a statement. “Incidents such as this extend beyond one target and spread fear to an entire community.”
The case was investigated by the New York Police Department’s Hate Crimes Task Force in partnership with the Queens District Attorney’s Hate Crimes Bureau.
Faisal is also facing a separate indictment charging him with manslaughter, assault and other offenses stemming from a May 25 crash in Queens that killed 71-year-old Cara Trager. Prosecutors allege Faisal drove through two red lights on Francis Lewis Boulevard before colliding with two vehicles, causing one of them to strike Trager and her husband as they crossed the street.
The hate crimes case remains pending.