HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – The man accused of leaving feces at the Chabad of South Broward and spitting at a menorah there had his bond set at $11,000 on Tuesday, which is less than the amount prosecutors were asking.
Jeffrey Carl Fleming, 39, who was arrested Monday, will have to wear a GPS monitoring device if he posts bond, and he has been ordered to stay away from the Chabad.
Not once, but twice a man dressed in all white rode up to the Chabad of South Broward in Hallandale Beach on an electric bike. He was caught on video yelling anti-Jewish words, leaving a bag of feces near the menorah out front and then spitting on the menorah.
That was Friday. Officials at the Chabad said he came back Sunday night and left another styrofoam cooler filled with more feces. Police said a container of feces was found at another Jewish facility, just down the sidewalk.
He’s also accused of yelling anti-Jewish statements at one of the rabbis at the Chabad, and more surveillance video revealed Tuesday shows the suspect apparently trying to get into the building.
He was stopped by a guard at the facility that also has a daycare and preschool during the day.
Hallandale Beach police on Monday arrested Fleming, who faces charges for stalking and littering with a hate crime enhancements.
Fleming appeared before a judge Tuesday morning, where a prosecutor relayed some sentiments from Jewish leaders while asking that Fleming’s bond be set at $25,000 for his charges.
“The Jewish community in Hallandale Beach and at the Chabad is in fear for their safety, based on the allegations contained in the report,” said Eric Linder of the Broward state attorney’s office.
The Anti-Defamation League of Florida says that antisemitic incidents are on the rise recently.
“It’s rooted in hate and antisemitism,” Rabbi Mendy Tennenhaus, of the Chabad of South Broward told Local 10 News of the actions caught on camera outside his facility. “He chose to bring it here and not somewhere else. He chose the words that he used.
“This is a cooler full of, supposed, human feces,” Tennenhaus added. “It’s an embarrassment. “It’s sad to have to have to live in such a world, and live in the U.S., the states, and have such activity going on around us.”
In a visit to Miami on Tuesday, state Attorney General Ashley Moody said, “Any antisemitism in Florida will not be tolerated.”