Three teenagers were arrested yesterday in connection with a recent burglary at Ahavoth Torah Synagogue in the West Bronx. The police said they had sold the synagogue’s large candelabra, which has been recovered, for $4 and had also taken bottles of wine and other items. Rabbi David Toiv recalled yesterday that five torahs had been destroyed in an arson attack on the synagogue several weeks ago. The teenagers have not been linked by police to the arson attack. He told the JTA that the Orthodox temple, at which some 50 mainly elderly worshipers attend services, had taken to rescheduling night-time activities to the day-time in the wake of these incidents and similar ones at synagogues throughout the city. He noted that Mayor John V. Lindsay was serving as honorary chairman of a campaign to restore damaged or stolen religious property, and that the Police Department had initiated a “worship patrol.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.