BRUNSWICK (WGME) – A father and son from Harpswell are accused of spray-painting violent, racist and anti-Semitic messages in several communities on the Midcoast.
According to the criminal complaint, the father indicated he was upset about immigrants moving into apartments in Brunswick’s Cook’s Corner.
He blamed members of the Jewish faith for promoting the COVID vaccine and sending immigrants in to “clean out the white race.”
“We had already had heightened worries about how many people are out there, who is it?” Beth Israel in Bath President Marilyn Weinberg said.
The Beth Israel congregation in Bath was worried because they had just received a bomb threat.
A few weeks later, they learned about the racial and anti-Semitic vandalism being spray-painted throughout the area.
They were so concerned, they hired Bath police to provide armed security for children taking classes at the synagogue.
“We were concerned about their safety as well,” Weinberg said. “And we hired with our expense, our local police department has somebody come.”
According to the complaint, after they were arrested, William Deary and his 18-year-old son Hayden admitted to spray-painting the racist and anti-Semitic words and symbols on columns under the Route 1 overpass in Bath, as well as on dozens of roads and signs in the area.
Police say William Deary indicated he was upset about immigrants moving into the Brunswick apartments and blamed members of the Jewish faith for it, even though they were not involved.
“I’m not sure where that logic comes from. But it seems as though it ends up being the fault of us,” Weinberg said.
New Mainers living and working in Brunswick say hate crimes like these are terrifying.
“When you’re being threatened or when you are scared to be found or killed, because some people are upset because you’re being helped by the government, I mean, that’s just really bad as a feeling,” Jonathan Francois with the Immigrant Resource Center of Maine said.
In addition to criminal mischief, the father and son are now being charged with a hate crime, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine.
State Attorney General Aaron Frey calls the behavior of the father and son shocking and reprehensible.
William Deary pleaded not guilty in court. Hayden has not yet entered a plea.
Jewish leaders hope these were threats and nothing more.
“We hope they would never act on any of that, but you have to be careful,” Weinberg said.
Leaders of Brunswick’s immigrant community say they hope police continue to do all they can to protect new Mainers and make them feel safe.
Many of them say Brunswick is a welcoming community and they hope it stays that way.