Swastikas, a Star of David, and written slogans referencing genocide were spray-painted across storefronts and office suites at Lefferts Plaza in Richmond Hill overnight, in an incident that continued into the early morning hours of last Friday. Investigators are canvassing the commercial strip near Hillside Avenue and Lefferts Boulevard, reviewing physical evidence left at the scene as they try to determine who defaced exterior signage, promotional display boards, and property facades at the complex.
According to 5 Towns Central, authorities reviewed the overnight defacement after multiple commercial spaces and professional offices were tagged with hostile markings and hate-fueled imagery, with a local legal practice among the impacted locations. Social media reporting from the community outlet Bukharian Community identified that legal practice as the office of attorney Michelle Kariyeva, Esq., situated next door to the Oligarch event venue inside the plaza. Neighboring storefronts and office suites were also affected, and community leaders and law enforcement personnel have urged local residents, business operators, and nearby motorists to review security feeds and dashcam recordings for anything useful.
Investigators have not established the precise timeline of the overnight vandalism, and no specific suspects have been publicly identified by authorities. The inquiry remains ongoing, with investigators reviewing nearby surveillance systems and seeking footage capturing the responsible individual or group. People who observed suspicious activity are encouraged to contact local law enforcement, and whether the case will be prosecuted as a bias-motivated hate crime remains under assessment.
How New York Law Treats Swastika Vandalism
Under Section 240.31 of the New York State Penal Law, etching, painting, or drawing a swastika on public or private property without the owner's permission is classified as Aggravated Harassment in the First Degree, a Class E felony, according to FindLaw. Separately, under New York Penal Law Section 485.05, underlying offenses like criminal mischief can be prosecuted with a hate crime penalty enhancement if investigators prove the property was intentionally selected based on religious or ethnic bias, per guidance cited by SUNY Brockport's police accreditation materials. Per guidelines from the NYC Mayor's Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes, bias-motivated property damage reports are first investigated by local precinct officers before being referred to the specialized NYPD Hate Crime Task Force for formal evaluation alongside the department's Legal Bureau.
Business owners and community members in the corridor have voiced concern about targeted intimidation following the defacement. The plaza sits near neighborhoods with significant Bukharian Jewish populations, a Central Asian diaspora community centered across Queens Boulevard, Kew Gardens, and Forest Hills, according to background compiled by the Queens Jewish Link, and one of the largest Bukharian Jewish communities outside Israel and Uzbekistan.
Part of a Citywide Surge in Anti-Jewish Incidents
The Lefferts Plaza defacement lands amid a sharp rise in antisemitic hate crimes across New York City. NYPD statistics published in August show anti-Jewish hate crimes accounted for 56.9 percent of all confirmed hate crimes citywide during the first seven months of 2026 — 205 of 360 confirmed incidents — making Jewish residents the most targeted group despite comprising roughly 10 percent of the city's population, according to the Combat Antisemitism Movement. The same NYPD figures show confirmed anti-Jewish hate crimes jumped 53.3 percent month-over-month in July, rising from 15 incidents in June to 23 in July.
Central Queens has already seen a string of similar cases this year. In May, four individuals defaced multiple synagogues and private homes across nearby Rego Park and Forest Hills with swastikas and antisemitic slogans, an incident Hoodline covered in an overnight swastika spree report that triggered an NYPD Hate Crime Task Force investigation. In July, an armed assailant attacked people with a hammer outside the Jewish Institute of Queens in Elmhurst/Woodhaven, a case Hoodline also reported, prompting local community groups to demand increased security patrols around Queens Jewish institutions.
Separately, a masked gunman opened fire outside a law office near Union Turnpike and 189th Street on August 27, fleeing in a gray sedan, according to the community Facebook page Bukharian Community. That shooting has not been classified as a hate crime, but it added to a tense week for professional offices across Queens as the Lefferts Plaza investigation got underway. For now, the plaza case remains open, with no confirmed hate crime classification and no named suspects, as investigators continue combing surveillance footage from the commercial strip.
