Queens man arrested in antisemitic bias incident in Cedarhurst, cops say

A Queens man was arrested for a bias incident after making antisemitic remarks and threatening a group of people in Cedarhurst during Rosh Hashanah on Friday afternoon, according to Nassau County police.

Alvin Tirado, 38, is charged with second-degree assault, second-degree aggravated harassment and third-degree menacing/hate crime, according to online court records.

Tirado was driving a 2007 white Lexus around Lincoln Street and Oakland Avenue at 1:20 p.m. when he allegedly made antisemitic statements and threatened numerous people, police said. A short time later, he approached another group and made additional anti-Jewish remarks and threats.

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, started at sundown on Wednesday and ended on Friday evening. The holiday marks the start of the Jewish High Holidays.

Tirado, who was arrested following an investigation, also became physically combative and caused injuries to a police officer while being placed in the back of a police vehicle, police said. The officer was taken to a hospital for treatment.

Tirado pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Saturday at First District Court in Hempstead, according to court records. Bail was set at 15,000 cash, $30,000 insured bond or $130,000 partially secured surety bond.

He was represented by the Legal Aid Society of Nassau County, which did not return calls Saturday.

Tirado's arrest comes amid a surge of antisemitic incidents across the state and nation last year. The Anti-Defamation League reported 1,218 antisemitic incidents in New York last year, a 110% jump from 2022. The country saw 8,873 such incidents in 2023, the most reported since the ADL began tracking data in 1979.