Overview
- Dan Sohail, 36, pleaded guilty Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court to intentionally damaging religious property by ramming the Chabad-Lubavitch world headquarters.
- Prosecutors said he moved barriers, waved people back, then drove into a side entrance five times, knocking the door off its hinges with no injuries reported.
- The charge carries up to three years in prison and mandatory restitution, and prosecutors estimated a guideline range of zero to six months.
- AP and court filings put the damage around $19,000, and Gothamist reported the plea agreement did not include a hate-crime count after state charges were dropped.
- The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn handled the case, and a Chabad spokesperson criticized the expected sentence as too light with formal sentencing to follow later this year.