ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – A destructive rampage at two Albuquerque Jewish centers was over in a matter of minutes, but left behind more than $100,000 in damage and a shaken community. In each instance, a man ran up to the entrance and took a heavy tool to the glass. Security video showed what unfolded on June 2 at the Jewish community center near Wyoming and Academy.
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Staff members can be seen responding, as the man left dents in the outer doors, then went inside and struck one of the inner doors, before running away. Just a few minutes earlier, there was a similar attack at Congregation Albert near Louisiana and Montgomery, where the glass of the front doors was shattered.
The investigation led police to Rex Crofton. After speaking to him on the phone, investigators convinced Crofton to turn himself in. Investigators later discovered Crofton had a history of making anti-Semitic statements and threats, leading his family to become increasingly concerned he might commit violence. After the attacks on the two buildings, his family called police to report a text Crofton sent to a family friend, saying, “I just hit two synagogues in five minutes” and threatening to kill law enforcement. It left members of Albuquerque’s Jewish community to grapple with the implications of the crime…