Oregon Man Pleads Guilty to Three Federal Hate Crimes for Defacing Synagogue

An Oregon man pleaded guilty today to three federal hate crimes after intentionally defacing a synagogue in Eugene, Oregon, on multiple occasions.

Adam Edward Braun, 34, of Eugene, pleaded guilty to two counts of intentionally defacing a synagogue and one count of attempting to intentionally damage the synagogue because the synagogue was a place of religious worship for Jewish people.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Braun targeted Temple Beth Israel, a Jewish synagogue in Eugene, with graffiti on two separate occasions. Between Sept. 10 and 11, 2023, Braun spray-painted the numbers “1377” on the exterior of the synagogue building. Braun admitted that he selected the numbers “1377” because it was similar to “1488,” a popular white-supremacist slogan that references Adolf Hitler and the “Fourteen words.” Months later, in January, Braun attempted to damage the synagogue’s glass doors using a ball-peen hammer. Braun stopped when he saw he was being recorded by a surveillance camera and went to another area of the property where he spray-painted the slogan “WHITE POWER” in large letters.

Read more: Department of Justice