San Jose: Jewish-owned business vandalized with swastikas

SAN JOSE — A Jewish-owned HVAC company’s building and vehicles were vandalized with swastikas Monday night.

Unknown suspects drew swastikas on four vehicles and the garage door of HVAC Gurus, said Lior Zeevi, the company’s owner. The San Jose Police Department is investigating the incident as a hate crime, authorities said.

Zeevi said he was “disgusted” by the vandalism and that it was “extremely disappointing.

“They have nothing better to do, I guess, than coming and damaging other people’s properties just because of my religion or what I believe in,” Zeevi said. “I believe it’s very, very dark-minded people that actually are going to go and do stuff like that.”

SJPD, which reported to the scene around 8:45 a.m. Tuesday, said that at least one vehicle had been vandalized with a hate symbol. The business is located on the 70 block of Phelan Avenue.

The suspects are currently unidentified, authorities said.

Zeevi received a call from one of his employees Tuesday morning telling him he needed to come in right away because of damage to the company’s vehicles, he said.

“When I came in, I saw how bad it is,” he said.

Some of the vehicles also had broken windows and mirrors, Zeevi added. The door of the building will need to be repainted, and the vehicles will need to be cleaned. In the meantime, Zeevi had to rent vehicles to use for the company’s work.

Zeevi said he saw three masked figures on security footage. The unknown suspects also painted “KKK” on the garage door, Zeevi added.

“We want to make sure that it’s not going to happen again to nobody else,” Zeevi said.

Zeevi added that, since the attacks of Oct. 7, 2023 on Israel, the Jewish community has been very cautious, including paying for extra security. This is the first time he has experienced anti-Semitic vandalism to his business.

“I don’t know why people do stuff like that. It’s not normal,” he said. “They targeted us just because we were being Jewish.”

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Rabbi Mendel Weinfeld of Chabad, who is Zeevi’s rabbi, said that the vandalism was “not just vandalism.”

“It was a message. It was a message meant to intimidate, to isolate, instill fear. But as Jews, we’ve seen this message before, and we know exactly how to respond,” he said. “We add in light. Hate doesn’t get the final word — goodness does.”

“To those who try to spread darkness, they should know that you’ve only made us stronger,” he added. “You reminded us who we are, and you reminded us that the Jewish flame doesn’t flicker, it only burns brighter.”