Man suspected of vandalizing Sarasota synagogue

A Sarasota man was arrested in connection with the vandalism of a synagogue in downtown Sarasota. The Sarasota Police Department charged Brayton Laschinger, 30, with felony criminal mischief of a religious building as a hate crime.

The vandalism occurred at approximately 6 a.m. Wednesday at a synagogue on Cocoanut Avenue, police said. The police department said surveillance footage shows a man with a blue towel over his head and face throwing a brick and breaking the front window.

Laschinger claimed he was angered earlier in the morning by propaganda on social media. He admitted to detectives he threw the brick at the window of the synagogue because it was a Jewish place of worship, police reported.

Laschinger was released Friday on $2,500 bond. 

The case remains under investigation and anyone with information is asked to call the SPD Criminal Investigations Division at 941-263-6070 or Sarasota Crime Stoppers at 941-366-8477.