NY man charged with antisemitic attacks found with weapons, hundreds of thousands in cash, feds say

Court filings provide further information about a New York man charged with a series of antisemitic attacks.

The US Department of Justice charged Tarek Bazrouk, 20, with hate crimes yesterday for assaulting Jews, including two Columbia University students, during three separate Gaza protests.

A federal attorney files a letter in the case saying a search of Bazrouk’s apartment turned up weapons and “hundreds of thousands of dollars in unexplained cash.” Bazrouk lived in the Manhattan apartment with other family members and was previously arrested for dealing drugs.

The weapons were several knives including a switch blade, brass knuckles, an airsoft gun that looks like an actual firearm, and spent bullet casings.

The letter says Bazrouk threatened violence in text messages with unnamed acquaintances. He threatened to shoot people using a gun emoji, and in another text, said, “You know i gothcu and if I don’t my gun do.”

“If I ever see 1 of them ima boom them,” he said in another message, referring to Jews.

He also shared images of bullets and firearms on social media that suggested he had access to guns.

Bazrouk visited the West Bank and Jordan in 2024, the letter says. He texted friends that during the visit he found out he has family members in Hamas, saying that it made him “mad happy.” He wore a Hamas headband to at least one protest.

The letter urges the court to hold Bazrouk in custody ahead of a bail hearing later this month because he poses a threat and a flight risk.

The three protests where Bazrouk assaulted Jews were led by Within Our Lifetime, the leading anti-Israel protest group in New York City. Other activists affiliated with the group are in prison for antisemitic hate crimes.