Judge orders release of man who rammed into Chabad HQ, rules out antisemitism as motive

Man convicted after repeatedly ramming his car into Chabad Hasidic movement’s headquarters sentenced to time served, enabling him to be released from jail next week.

By World Israel News Staff

A federal judge has sentenced a New Jersey man who repeatedly drove his car into the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters in Brooklyn to six months and one week in prison, rejecting prosecutors’ request to keep him incarcerated for eight additional months.

Dan Sohail, 36, had already spent approximately six months in custody by Wednesday’s sentencing and is expected to be released within about a week. US District Judge Eric Vitaliano also ordered him to pay approximately $19,000 in restitution for damage to the landmark Jewish institution at 770 Eastern Parkway.

Sohail pleaded guilty in May to intentionally damaging religious property. Federal sentencing guidelines reportedly called for a sentence of around six months, although the offense carried a statutory maximum of three years in prison.

Vitaliano rejected the Justice Department’s argument that a longer sentence was necessary to deter attacks against Jews and Jewish institutions amid rising antisemitic incidents in New York.

The judge said he was “somewhat saddened” that prosecutors appeared to be relying on the public’s initial perception that the incident was an antisemitic attack. He said the ramming had first been portrayed as an “I-hate-the-Jews crime, or, worse, an act-of-terrorism crime,” despite evidence that Sohail had been attempting to join or form a connection with the Jewish community.

Prosecutors had pointed to New York Police Department statistics showing that 80 of the city’s 146 reported hate-crime incidents since the beginning of the year had targeted Jews or Jewish institutions.

Vitaliano, however, cited a psychiatric evaluation and said Sohail’s mental-health problems “played an important role” in his actions.

“This is a sad tale,” the judge said.

Sohail’s defense attorney, Mia Eisner-Grynberg, said in court papers that her client suffered from depression and post-traumatic stress disorder connected to a traumatic childhood. She said he had sought a sense of belonging through Judaism and had previously received a warm reception from rabbinical students at Chabad headquarters.

According to the defense, Sohail danced with members of the community and traveled to Israel after being encouraged to do so. His behavior reportedly became increasingly erratic and anxious following his return to the US, and the defense characterized the eventual ramming as an irrational attempt to obtain help rather than an expression of hostility toward Jews.

Sohail did not address the court during the sentencing hearing but thanked the judge after the sentence was announced. The judge said Sohail required continued psychological treatment and did not appear to harbor hatred toward Jews.

The attack occurred on the evening of January 28, when dozens of people were gathered at Chabad headquarters for events connected to the 75th anniversary of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson assuming leadership of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

According to federal prosecutors, Sohail arrived at a side entrance, got out of his vehicle and moved protective barriers that had been placed outside the building. He then motioned for nearby congregants to move away before returning to the car.

Sohail accelerated into the entrance, reversed and struck the building four more times. The impacts knocked a door from its hinges and badly damaged the front of his Honda Accord. No one was injured.

The incident initially sparked fears of an antisemitic terrorist attack. The New York Police Department’s Hate Crime Task Force opened an investigation, and police increased security around synagogues and other houses of worship.

Investigators subsequently learned that Sohail had previously visited Chabad institutions and was seeking information about Judaism. Police said video showed him enthusiastically dancing with Orthodox Jewish men at the Brooklyn headquarters during an earlier visit.

Sohail reportedly told investigators that he had recently learned he might have Jewish ancestry and wanted to explore Jewish traditions. His father also told reporters that Sohail had considered converting to Judaism and had a history of psychological problems.

Nevertheless, Sohail’s actions on January 28 were clearly deliberate. Authorities said he removed barriers, warned people to get out of the way and repeatedly accelerated into the doorway. He initially claimed that he had lost control of the vehicle because he was wearing “clunky boots,” according to police.

When Sohail pleaded guilty, the Justice Department described the incident as an attack on religious freedom and emphasized that the building was not merely a local synagogue but the international center of the Chabad movement.

“By pleading guilty today, the defendant admitted that he intentionally damaged the Chabad-Lubavitch World Headquarters, a globally significant Jewish religious institution,” US Attorney Joseph Nocella said at the time.

Vitaliano’s sentence effectively accepted the defense’s position that Sohail should be punished for the serious property damage he caused but should not receive a sentence intended for an antisemitic attacker when the evidence did not establish an anti-Jewish motive.