A 19-year-old Coral Springs man is facing a hate crime charge after Miami Beach police say he and another teen targeted a visibly Jewish man in Miami Beach and sprayed him and others with liquid from a water gun simply because they were Jews.
Michael Dean Emerson, 19, of Coral Springs, was arrested along with Dominic Angelo Martinez, 18, of Tamarac, in connection with the Jan. 11 incident near 41st Street and Collins Avenue, according to court records.
A Miami Beach Police Department arrest report states the Jewish victim was standing on the corner speaking with several other members of the Jewish community who were identifiable by their yarmulkes when a black 2017 Bentley Bentayga drove up with Emerson and Martinez inside, authorities said.
The victim told officers he heard the duo shout obscenities at the group and shout “Jews! Jews!” Police say the front passenger, identified as Emerson, then pointed what was described as a water gun toward the group, which the victim believed was a real firearm.
Authorities say an unknown liquid was shot from the device, striking the victim and others in the face before the SUV drove away.
Martinez and Emerson were arrested Feb. 19 and charged with battery with prejudice, a hate crime enhancement, and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade County. They were each later released on a $5,000 bond.
The alleged hate crime comes amid an unprecedented surge in incidents of bigotry targeting Jews across the U.S. since the October 7, 2023, terrorist attacks on Israel, and the ensuing Israel-Hamas war. That war ended last year following a peace deal brokered by the United States.
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