By COLlive reporter
A special unity Shabbos will be held this weekend in North Miami Beach, FL, in response to a shooting incident which took place at the Young Israel of NMB last Sunday.
The 69-year-old male victim was shot at 6 times while waiting for Mincha prayers outside the shul on 171 Street and 10th Avenue by an unidentified shooter. The police are still searching for the perpetrator, as well as a motive, for the violent act.
In response, the various synagogues which make up the Jewish community of North Miami Beach will be joining for a Shabbos of Achdus.
Rabbis of all the local Shuls have endorsed the unity Davening on Friday night and a gala Kiddush to take place on Shabbos day after Davening. Each Shul Rabbi will be speaking and giving words of encouragement at the Kiddush, to be held at the Young Israel Shul.
“It’s a wonderful thing for a community to stand together in times of crisis, and what better time to get together than on Shabbos,” a resident told COLlive.
Almost a week after the shooting, a heavy police presence remains in the area, with police providing extra coverage at all local Shuls and Jewish schools, Mark Rosenberg, a Police Chaplain, told COLlive.
“The community is extremely grateful to the Miami Dade Police Department for their swift and thorough response to the shooting and heavy coverage they have been providing in the community since the incident, until they can determine the cause of the shooting,” Rosenberg told COLlive.
In addition, the police department was instrumental in arranging for cameras which can read license plates to be approved in the area, a project which began after the tragic murder of Rabbi Yosef Raksin, a Lubavitch resident of Crown Heights who was killed 5 years ago in the same North Miami Beach neighborhood while walking down the street.
“Installing the plate readers are very important in helping to catch the perpetrators of such crimes,” Rosenberg told COLlive.
The project stalled though, when it was discovered that special electricity transformers would need to be installed by Florida Power and Light for the cameras, which would take many weeks.
Rabbi Shneur Oirechman, Director of Chabad of the Florida Panhandle who is on friendly terms with Eric Silagy, the CEO of FPL, reached out to him and facilitated an expedited process for getting the power installed which could accommodate the cameras.
During the meeting, Rabbi Oirechman offered North Miami Police Major Richard Rand to put on Tefillin, which he hadn’t done since they met after the murder of Rabbi Raksin.
“Major Rand was very moved, and said he needs to come to shul more often – and that we should get together during good times as well,” Rabbi Oirechman said. “He said the security for the Jewish community is his utmost priority, on his agenda and on the agenda of the city of North Miami Beach,” he said.
It is not known that a bunch of yungerleit from Bais Menachem of NMB were instrumental in getting this Shabbos Achdus organized. Kol Hakavod to them and the beautiful kiddush hashem that was created.
I can’t believe they had not caught the shooter yet. There are discretions if the car. There must be cameras in the area. This is crazy. A yid was killed five years ago by some teen in a bike and after a long time they claim a possible suspect. Are there no normal detectives in that area. Maybe contact president Trump to send in FBI to handle this racist attack. The feds would do it for a black victim, why not a jewish victim.