ITHACA, N.Y. –– The Ithaca Police Department has now released the identity of the man responsible for vandalizing downtown businesses with anti-Semitic and racist graffiti back in October.
According to a press release from IPD, 32-year-old Anthony J. Dillon was arraigned in Ithaca City Court Thursday on three separate counts of Criminal Mischief in the fourth degree as a Hate Crime, and one count of Criminal Mischief in the third degree for the acts committed last fall.
Moosewood Restaurant and Sunny Days of Ithaca both encountered the vandalism—a poster was glued to the outside of the restaurant’s window which contained barely coherent rantings seemingly aimed at mocking and vilifying Jewish and Black people and designed to look like the front page of the Ithaca Voice, including a picture of Voice founder Jeff Stein, a Jewish man. Meanwhile, anti-Semitic posters were hung on Commons store Sunny Days’ front door along with threatening graffiti all over the store’s windows.
In addition, a local Jewish chiropractor had her “End White Silence” sign vandalized the same week with a Jewish slur, and similar graffiti to Sunny Days was sprayed on trash cans outside Black Cornell student’s homes.
Dillon was arrested by police back in October, immediately following the incidents, though it is unclear what may have caused the delay between the arrest and charges now being filed, or whether Dillon has been in custody this whole time. The subject was clearly identified as dangerous as over the course of their investigation, law enforcement uncovered materials for homemade explosives and firearms at Dillon’s residence and at another “undisclosed location.” Law enforcement also uncovered more hate posters, rifle parts, numerous items consistent with explosives such as fuse wire, caps, a timer, tubing and an “undisclosed amount of a powdered chemical” during their investigation at Dillion’s home.
Dillon was arraigned in Ithaca City Court and was released to the supervision of Tompkins County Probation.