Man Gets Federal Hate Charges For Central Synagogue Attack
Bronx resident Larry Montes now faces a maximum of 30 more years in prison due to the additional charges, on top of a maximum of 15 years for charges filed by local prosecutors.
| 19 Aug 2026 | 05:38
A Bronx resident has been hit with new federal hate crimes charges in connection with his August 14 attack on Central Synagogue, prosecutors announced on August 18. (
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Larry Montes reportedly punched an elderly worshipper and hurled a racial slur at a security guard during the attack. The NYPD said that Montes told them about being motivated by antisemitic and anti-Black sentiment. (
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A man charged with hate crimes by the Manhattan District Attorney for his attack on a synagogue is now being charged federally, as well, according to the Southern Federal District of New York.
“Today, the Southern District of New York filed federal charges against Larry Montes for his violent, hate‑motivated attack during Shabbat services at Central Synagogue on August 14, in which he disrupted worship, struck a congregant, damaged synagogue property, and spat on and headbutted a security guard,” U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said in a statement.
“An attack on a house of worship is an attack on the fundamental right to practice one’s faith safely, and our Office will work tirelessly to ensure the defendant is held fully accountable as we continue to protect all communities from hate‑driven violence,” McDonald added.
Montes, 46 and a resident of the Bronx, was previously charged by the D.A.’s office with crimes that could result in a minimum of five to 15 years behind bars. Now, he faces two separate federal hate crime charges that each come with a maximum of ten years in prison, as well as a charge of damaging religious property that could result in up to an additional 20 years.
As further elaborated by federal prosecutors, Montes reportedly sat amongst the congregation when Shabbat services began at Central Synagogue at around 6 p.m., before abruptly getting out of his seat around ten minutes later.
Prosecutors say that Montes then charged up the aisle of the temple towards the bismah, where rabbis read from the Torah, before flinging two $10,000 “ceremonial candle sticks with gold accents” to the ground. Both were damaged.
At this point, one security guard visibly grabbed ahold of him on a livestream, and began directing Montes towards the exit. Prosecutors say that Montes then began yelling insults at the gathered hundreds-strong congregation, namely “f—k you people” and “I don’t f—k with you people.”
As Montes neared the exit, he then reportedly punched a 63-year-old worshipper in the face, knocking her to the ground. Once law enforcement arrived and were in the process of handcuffing him, prosecutors say that Montes called another security guard—a Black man—”the N word,” before spitting in the the man’s face and head-butting him.
Federal prosecutors added that Montes, who around this point apparently made clear his intentions to return to the synagogue at some point, then made a series of racist comments after being read his Miranda rights; these included “f—k the Jews. . . . it’s racial” and “I will never affiliate with no filthy f—king synagogues, either here or in f—king Israel.” He also reportedly described his actions as “religiously motivated.”
Central Synagogue, located on Lexington Avenue and E. 55th St., has been serving practitioners of Reform Judaism since being consecrated in the 1870s. The NYPD says that there is no ongoing threat to the temple after the incident on August 14.
NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, who is Jewish and previously called the attack “very painful” for her personally, provided a statement of support for the additional federal charges levied against Montes: “I am grateful that an NYPD sergeant was there to take him into custody, and for the ongoing efforts of our Hate Crimes Task Force and our federal partners to hold Montes accountable for his alleged crimes.”