Jan 27, 2008 10:47 pm US/Eastern
Brooklyn Man Faces Charges In Hate Crime Case
Ivanov Indicted On Over 100 Counts Of Criminal Mischief
BROOKLYN (CBS) ―
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Ivaylo Ivanov faces up to 25-years in prison if convicted on hate crimes charges. (File)
CBS
Brooklyn was hit with waves of hate crimes last year, but Sunday investigators say they have the two men responsible. Ivaylo Ivanov has been charged with 105 counts of hate crimes as well as criminal possession of a cache of rifles, handguns, and 8 pipe bombs, including one with a remote control.
Investigators say 37-year old Ivanov is responsible for spray painting swastikas on synagogues, homes, and cars last September, they say he also papered cars around Brooklyn Heights with flyers containing swastikas and hate filled words.
"Was this bomb capable of functioning as designed and exploding as the bomb-maker intended it to do? The answer is yes," said Mark Torre of the NYPD Bomb Squad at a press conference. "Was this device capable of causing death or serious physical injury to anyone in close proximity? The answer is yes."
Last week police responded to the Brooklyn Heights brownstone where the suspect lives after he accidentally shot himself in the hand leading them to this arrest.
"Swastikas are not just ordinary graffiti," said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. "They are hateful symbols that clearly generate fear."
"Hate crimes are attacks against the whole of society, not just the individuals or groups targeted," added Brooklyn District Attorney Charles J. Hynes. "These crimes will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The message we try to send and send today is hate crimes are not going to be tolerated."
At the same time, Hynes announced the arrest of a second suspect, Pavel Andreenko, in an unrelated case involving the painting of swastikas in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Flatbush and Sheepshead Bay last month. Andreenko was linked to the incidents through alleged phone calls he made to police and white paint found on his clothing, he said.
"It's not just about the hate, it's about the potential in this country for things to escalate into violence and bombs and guns," Rabbi Serge Lippe of the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue told CBS 2 HD. "We've had Virginia Tech, we've had the Omish school house, I think but for a miracle and our thanks to the detectives, we would have been looking at a similar situation."
"These two cases are emblematic of the tenacity of the department's Hate Crimes Task Force," Kelly told reporters. "These are very, very difficult cases to investigate."
He said the unit put 100 detectives on the Brooklyn Heights case from the start and "had the suspect in the cross-hairs" even before the Jan. 20 incident. "They even met his dog, because one of the incidents had occurred in a dog run," Kelly said.
Ivanov subsequently made statements implicating himself in the vandalism, police had said previously. They described him as a Bulgarian national who came to the United States 15 years ago. Adrian Lesher, the suspect's court-appointed lawyer, had said previously he was Jewish.
Lesher did not return a call seeking comment on Sunday. If convicted, Ivanov faces up to 25-years in prison. Andreenko is looking at a potential 12 years behind bars. Detectives say the two suspects were not working together.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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