(JTA) — A local man was arrested a day after police in Sharon, Massachusetts, posted on Facebook that the suburban Boston community’s eruv had been repeatedly vandalized.
Yerachmiel E. Taube 28, was arrested Saturday on charges of malicious destruction of property, destruction to a religious organization, interference with civil rights and disorderly conduct. He was scheduled to be arraigned Monday morning in Stoughton District Court.
Taube formerly attended Young Israel of Sharon, whose rabbi supervises the eruv, according to the Boston Globe.
According to Jewish law, an eruv is a boundary marked with strings and existing fencing inside of which Jews may push and carry objects outside their homes on the Sabbath and holy days. They tend to surround synagogues and their adjacent neighborhoods.
Some 40 volunteers for the Sharon Eruv Society, which helps maintain the eruv on a weekly basis, had offered a reward for information about the vandalism. The eruv was constructed in 1990.
On Friday, Sharon Police in their post reported that the eruv “has been the subject of extensive vandalism over the last few weeks.” The post included photos of downed poles and special markers that make up the boundary markers.
According to the police post, the eruv “has served as a critical piece of infrastructure for the Jewish community by creating a sense of togetherness for hundreds of households in the Town of Sharon.”
The ADL New England praised the Sharon Police for investigating the incident and making an arrest.
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