Burglar jailed for 14 days over synagogue break-in
Offender with prior conviction for anti-Semitism is sentenced for breaking into a shul after being identified on CCTV
A burglar who broke into a Stamford Hill shul has been jailed and ordered to pay a fine.
Mark Zahra pleaded guilty to breaking into a synagogue after being identified from CCTV footage by neighbourhood watch group Shomrim, who then reported him to the police.
Convicted at Thames Magistrates’ Court, he will spend two weeks in prison and has been ordered to pay £115.
The offender, who stole ‘valuable items’ during the burglary on 2 December according to Shomrim, has a previous conviction for anti-Semitic hate crime. Authorities are unable to say if the shul break-in and burglary was motivated by anti-Semitism.
Barry Bard, supervisor at Stamford Hill Shomrim, said “The swift actions of our members enabled Zahra to be successfully identified as the burglar who targeted a Synagogue and Community Centre in Stamford Hill, Hackney. I would like to thank the Metropolitan Police for investigating this burglary, that affected many in the community, and for swiftly arresting Zahra, enabling justice to be served. Zahra is a prolific offender who has many previous convictions, including a recent conviction for antisemitism.”
Court Update: Prolific offender from #Hackney, Mark Zahra, pleaded GUILTY to burgling a Synagogue in #StamfordHill. Sentenced to 14 days imprisonment. Zahra was brought to justice after #Shomrim successfully identified him from CCTV pic.twitter.com/DTCZJeYBUH
— Shomrim (Stamford Hill) (@Shomrim) December 21, 2017
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