Montgomery Community Media

Montgomery County Councilmembers, County Executive Marc Elrich, and faith leaders showed support for the Muslim community Sunday by attending an interfaith event at the Islamic Center of Maryland in Gaithersburg. According to Councilmember Evan Glass, over “two dozen religious institutions” came to this interfaith event to show support for the Muslim community, days after the attack […]

Yom Kippur, known as the Day of Atonement, is celebrated this year starting on the evening of Sept. 22 and ends in the evening of Wednesday, Sept. 23. It is also the holiest day of the year for the Jewish people and calls for atonement and repentance. The Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington is scheduled to celebrate […]

The teen, who was arrested and charged with vandalizing a Gaithersburg synagogue, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, according to court documents. Sebastian Espinoza-Carranza was charged with defacement of religious property, damage to a religious institution, and malicious destruction of property for the antisemitic graffiti found on Shaare Torah Synagogue in Gaithersburg back in April. His sentencing is set […]

It was an emotional interview for Sebastian Espinoza-Carranza at his home in Gaithersburg. The teen was arrested and charged with vandalizing a Gaithersburg synagogue. The 18-year-old teen says he is not a racist person and that he is really sorry. The congregation’s surveillance video helped lead police to Spinoza-Carranza. It shows him allegedly spray painting swastikas, […]

UPDATED Gaithersburg police officers are looking for the vandal(s) who defaced the Shaare Torah synagogue in Gaithersburg. “At this time, detectives are continuing to investigate the incident,” said Officer Dane Lane. “They are following up on leads and speaking with citizens who may have or may not have seen anything. We are always looking for more […]

Gaithersburg Police Chief Mark Sroka said detectives have identified a “person of interest” who could be involved in the Shaare Torah Synagogue vandalism case. Local authorities have surveillance footage showing a masked person running away from the building.  Sroka said the report came in at 7:10 a.m. this morning. That’s when police officers found eleven swastikas and other […]

UPDATED Gaithersburg police are investigating vandalism at the Shaare Torah Synagogue at 1408 Main Street in Gaithersburg. Swastikas and other hate crime graffiti were spray painted on the building overnight. Officer Dan Lane said a citizen flagged down a passing police officer at about 7:10 a.m. this morning to report the vandalism at the synagogue, […]

It is a special time of the year for the Jewish community. Yom Kippur, the Jewish Day of Atonement, is celebrated this year starting on the evening of October 3 to the evening on October 4. Rabbi Elhanan ‘Sunny’ Schnitzer, from Bethesda Jewish Congregation, said there are two holidays during a 10 day period: Rosh Hashanah, the […]