A Tennessee man with apparent ties to a neo-Nazi group was arrested last week after entering a Jewish community centre disguised in a ridiculous rabbi costume.
Nashville police said Travis Keith Garland, 31, of Maryville, was arrested Jan. 15 after a man drove to and entered the Gordon Jewish Community Center wearing a fake beard, fake lock curls, a black coat and white silk scarf to make himself appear as an Orthodox Jew.
Police said the man appeared in the costume at the Jewish community centre on Jan. 13, but was stopped immediately by a staff member at the front desk.
Police said the man asked to speak with a rabbi, but was told there were no rabbis in the building. He ignored the staffer and walked to a door that was ajar, but was stopped from entering.
“At that point, a security guard came to the lobby area and ordered Garland to leave, prompting Garland to continue demanding to speak with a rabbi,” police said in a statement.
“The security guard reported Garland started eyeing his pistol, putting him in fear that he might try to take it. As the security guard persisted in his commands, Garland ultimately retreated out of the lobby to the parking lot.”
An officer arrived minutes later and questioned Garland, who told the cop “he was taking part in an internet prank.” After a warning, Garland was allowed to leave after it was determined he was unarmed.
Garland was initially accused of criminal trespassing. An assault charge was added after investigators said a security guard was in fear while trying to remove the man from the property.
Meanwhile, CBS affiliate WTVF reported online chatter about Garland following the incident suggested he is affiliated with the neo-Nazi Goyim Defense League. According to the report, the hate group paraded in Nashville last summer and spewed antisemitic, racist and homophobic messages.
Garland is the third person from the group arrested by police in the last six months.
Ryan Scott McCann, from Ontario, was charged last July with felony aggravated assault and disorderly conduct when he was caught on video jabbing and hitting a Nashville bartender with a flagpole with a swastika flag during a protest.
In September, David Aaron Bloyed, from Texas, was arrested on federal charges for an online threat to kill Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk.