New Jersey rabbi assaulted in random attack outside his home on eve of Jewish holiday

By Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN

(CNN) — A rabbi in New Jersey was assaulted in a random attack Sunday afternoon ahead of a weeklong Jewish holiday, prompting police to add extra patrols around residences and synagogues.

Avraham Wein, the assistant rabbi at Congregation Keter Torah, was assaulted outside his home in Bergenfield, New Jersey, just 15 minutes outside Jersey City, he told CNN on Monday, declining to comment further about the incident.

Jeffrey Zicchinella, 40, was driving Sunday around 2 p.m. when he got out of his car and assaulted the rabbi, according to a Facebook post from Bergenfield Police Chief Mustafa Rabboh.

A nearby resident came to help the rabbi, the chief said, adding both the rabbi and the resident suffered minor injuries.

A “thorough investigation” with the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office determined the incident was “not a hate crime or bias-related,” the Borough of Bergenfield said in a news release to CNN Monday.

“This was a random act of violence. No words were exchanged prior to the assault, and there is no indication that this attack was motivated by race, religion, or ethnicity,” Rabboh said in the updated release.

The incident happened amid a rise in antisemitic incidents, one day before Sukkot, known as “the Time of our Happiness” and one of three major holidays on the Jewish calendar, according to the American Jewish Committee.

The assault also occurred during a time of heightened tension around the world. Last week, at least two Jewish worshippers were killed and three others seriously injured in a car ramming and stabbing attack outside a synagogue in Manchester, England, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism. The assault in New Jersey came two days before the second anniversary of the start of the war in Gaza.

Zicchinella was taken into custody and charged with two counts of simple assault. He is being held at Bergen County Jail, according to jail records. It’s unclear whether Zicchinella has an attorney.

CNN has reached out to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office.

While police have said the incident appears to be isolated, Rabboh “ordered our officers to conduct extra patrols around residences and synagogues” in an abundance of caution.

“We do not tolerate violence in any form,” Bergenfield Mayor Arvin Amatorio, wrote in a statement. “What occurred was unacceptable, but the actions of the residents and the swift response of our police department demonstrate the strength and unity of our town.”

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CNN’s Cindy Von Quednow contributed to this report.