Oregon Man Pleads Guilty to Three Federal Hate Crimes for Defacing Synagogue

An Oregon man pleaded guilty today to three federal hate crimes after intentionally defacing a synagogue in Eugene, Oregon, on multiple occasions.  

Adam Edward Braun, 34, of Eugene, pleaded guilty to two counts of intentionally defacing a synagogue and one count of attempting to intentionally damage the synagogue because the synagogue was a place of religious worship for Jewish people.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Braun targeted Temple Beth Israel, a Jewish synagogue in Eugene, with graffiti on two separate occasions. Between Sept. 10 and 11, 2023, Braun spray-painted the numbers “1377” on the exterior of the synagogue building. Braun admitted that he selected the numbers “1377” because it was similar to “1488,” a popular white-supremacist slogan that references Adolf Hitler and the “Fourteen words.” Months later, in January, Braun attempted to damage the synagogue’s glass doors using a ball-peen hammer. Braun stopped when he saw he was being recorded by a surveillance camera and went to another area of the property where he spray-painted the slogan “WHITE POWER” in large letters. 

Braun faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison for each of the three charges, as well as fines and restitution.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Natalie K. Wight for the District of Oregon and Special Agent in Charge Douglas Olson of the FBI Portland Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Portland Field Office investigated the case with assistance from the Eugene Police Department.

Trial Attorney Cameron A. Bell of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gavin W. Bruce for the District of Oregon are prosecuting the case.

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Source: Justice.gov