Federal prosecutors charge Albuquerque man in hate crime attacks on Jewish sites

Federal prosecutors in New Mexico have charged Albuquerque resident Rex Crofton, 25, with a hate crime after what investigators described as back-to-back attacks on two Jewish community institutions. The case has pushed attention beyond property damage and toward the threat Jewish sites face when vandalism, intimidation and weapons converge in a single day.

According to the Justice Department, Crofton first arrived at Congregation Albert in a silver sedan at about 4:31 p.m. on June 2 and used a tool to shatter the synagogue’s glass entry doors. Prosecutors say he then made a mocking gesture toward the building and drove off. About eight minutes later, he reached the Jewish Community Center of Greater Albuquerque, where surveillance video captured him striking the front doors repeatedly with a metal tool that appeared to be a crowbar. When security guards moved toward him, one pepper-sprayed him through the vehicle window before he sped away.

The federal filing says the point of the case is motive. Prosecutors allege the attacks were aimed at Jewish institutions because of their religious identity, which is why the government brought a hate-crime charge instead of limiting the matter to vandalism or criminal-damage counts. The Justice Department also says Crofton later sent threatening texts bragging about the incidents and expressing a desire to kill police officers. After he surrendered at a residence, officers recovered a crowbar, a revolver, high-capacity magazines, a machete, brass knuckles and a defaced Ukrainian flag.

Local reporting says Crofton was also charged in state court with two counts of felony criminal damage to property, desecration of a church, disorderly conduct and a hate-crime enhancement. He was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center on Wednesday. Damage at the synagogue and community center was initially estimated at tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars, underscoring the cost imposed on institutions that must now repair doors, review security and reassure congregants and families.

The Albuquerque Jewish community has already focused on cleanup and on keeping activities going after the vandalism. Congregation Albert and the Jewish Community Center of Greater Albuquerque have both said they were not letting the attacks stop their work, a response that reflects how communities often harden security after repeated threats while refusing to let fear dictate public life.

The Anti-Defamation League included the June 2026 Albuquerque case in its running list of notable physical attacks on U.S. synagogues. In its 2025 audit, the organization said American Jews were targeted an average of 17 times per day and that antisemitic assaults and attacks involving deadly weapons reached record highs in 2025, a backdrop that makes the federal charge in Albuquerque about more than one defendant. It marks how seriously prosecutors are treating attacks on Jewish institutions as both crimes against property and warnings about escalating danger.