Mezuzah Arsonist Says Chametz Burnings Provoked Him

BROOKLYN

The alleged mezuzah torcher said that the traditional fires that Orthodox Jews light to burn their chametz on Erev Pesach incited him to burn a dozen mezuzos in Williamsburg last week.

Ruben Ublies confessed to hate crime charges, according to the criminal complaint against him, which accused him of burglary, arson and criminal mischief as a hate crime, according to DNAinfo.com. that came when police confronted him with an online posting he wrote before he was taken into custody.

“When Jews burn wood and garbage on ebery (sic) corner, its OK to pollute the surroundings,” Ublies wrote in a long all-caps post riddled with misspellings.

Pressed about that line, Ublies admitted that he burned the mezuzos in retaliation for the Erev Pesach fires, which he called a disruption in the neighborhood.

Ublies, who claimed that he was named a suspect due to his long rap sheet — he was arrested a reported 52 times — was taken into custody Wednesday for the mezuzah burnings in Williamsburg earlier last week.

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