(CNN)Two more men were charged Thursday in connection with two anti-Semitic attacks in Brooklyn last weekend, according to criminal complaints filed by the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office.
Last Saturday, three men allegedly yelled “Kill all the Jews” and other statements at men outside of a Brooklyn synagogue before allegedly beating two Jewish teenagers about 10 minutes later, according to the complaints against them.
Haider Anjam, 20, was charged with three counts each of menacing as a hate crime, menacing, and aggravated harassment, in addition to criminal mischief in connection to the incident outside of the synagogue, according to the complaint. Anjam was also charged with two counts each of assault as a hate crime, menacing as a hate crime, attempted assault as a hate crime for the alleged beating, among other charges.
During the incident, Anjam was allegedly among those yelling at and approaching men outside the synagogue and beating on the doors of the temple before smashing the mirror of a parked car outside, according to the complaint.
Ashan Azad, 19, was charged with two counts each of assault as a hate crime, menacing as a hate crime, attempted assault as a hate crime, and assault, among other charges, related to the beating of the two Jewish teenagers.
Another man, 20-year-old Danial Shaukat, was already charged Wednesday with two counts each of assault as a hate crime and attempted assault as a hate crime, among other charges in the beating. Shaukat was also charged with three counts each of menacing as a hate crime, aggravated harassment and harassment for the incident outside of the Brooklyn synagogue.
The alleged beating
Azad was in the driver’s seat when Anjam and Shaukat exited the vehicle and approached two teenagers wearing yarmulkes, according to statements made by Azad cited in the complaint against him.
Anjam allegedly choked one of the victims during the attack, before returning to the trunk of the car and grabbing a cricket bat. The teenage boys fled, with the group chasing them for “several blocks,” according to the complaint against Anjam.
“I only touched one guy, I smacked him, I saw Anjam take out the wooden cricket bats from the trunk,” Azad said, according to the complaint. Azad said he then drove himself home.
Bail for both men is $2,000 cash or $4,000 bond, according to Brooklyn DA spokeswoman Helen Peterson.
Anjam pleaded not guilty, according to his lawyer, Mahmoud Rabah.
“He has every intention to fight these charges and the allegations against him, and I fully expect his interests to prevail in court,” Rabah said.
“It’s an unfortunate situation, because I think peoples’ passions were inflamed by events in the Middle East, and I hope that the district attorney’s office and the court will recognize that this is in relation to things that had occurred and affected people’s sensibilities.”
CNN could not locate Azad’s counsel or reach his family.
The Legal Aid Society is representing Shaukat and had no comment to CNN Wednesday, other than to confirm their client was arraigned.
