The actions occurred during Hanukkah, a Jewish holiday, and followed a mass shooting in Sydney, Australia where two gunmen targeted Jewish community members celebrating the holiday, killing 15 and injuring dozens more. 

The first incident occurred on Tuesday, where an individual threw rocks at the Jewish Center. According to ELPD this was initially reported as a criminal malicious destruction of property.

The second incident, which occurred yesterday between 3:00 and 4:00 a.m., involved an individual spray painting swastikas and the words “he’s back” on MSU Chabad’s front door before throwing rocks at the building’s windows.

ELPD is now investigating these incidents as possible hate crimes.

According to an ELPD press release, video evidence of the vandalism indicates that both acts were committed by the same individual.

ELPD has also released images of a suspect, and is asking the public to help identify the individual.

MSU Chabad is just one of around 30 Chabad centers across the state of Michigan and over 5000 centers globally, executive director of Chabad Lubavitch of Michigan Rabbi Kasriel Shemtov said.

“Every Chabad Center is a place that's kind of a home for anyone that's interested in learning more about their Judaism, learning more about being a good person in this world,” Shemtov said.

He emphasized that his community will not be deterred by these antisemitic acts of vandalism, and that Chabad has not canceled any events since these incidents.

“As the Chabad Jewish Center we are very much focused on looking forward, creating light, hope, optimism,” Shemtov said. “It's just going to make us stronger and make us more determined to move forward and do good in the world and make this world a better place.”

Shemtov said he found it ironic that these acts took place on Hanukkah, which were “quite the opposite of what Hanukkah is all about.”

“The message of Hanukkah is to bring light and to add light, especially when it's dark,” he added.

Following these incidents, MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz released an MSU community letter condemning antisemitism and the acts that occurred.

“Acts such as these reverberate far beyond physical damage, especially for members of the Jewish community who continue to live with the heightened reality of antisemitism.” Guskiewicz wrote.