Man is charged with hate crime for vandalizing Islamic center at Rutgers University

A man is accused of vandalizing an Islamic center at New Jersey’s flagship university on the Muslim holiday of Eid-al-Fitr has admitted to committing a hate crime, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.

Jacob Beacher, 24, of North Plainfield, now faces up to three years in prison when he is sentenced Feb. 11. He pleaded guilty on Wednesday to damaging religious property.

Beacher was initially charged in April with intentional or attempted obstruction of religious practice and making false statements to federal authorities. The charges stemmed from a Burglary on April 10 at the Center for Islamic Life at Rutgers University in New Brunswick.

Prosecutors have said Beacher damaged property at the site, including several religious artifacts and numerous other items containing sacred language from the Koran, Islam’s holy scriptures. Authorities said Beacher also stole a Palestinian flag and a charity box from the center.

Beacher is not affiliated with Rutgers, officials say.

When the burglary occurred around 2:40 a.m., the property was uninhabited, prosecutors said. Total damage was estimated at $40,000.

While speaking to the FBI two days after the burglary, Beacher said he was the person seen on video surveillance footage near downtown, but denied breaking into the location. The incident occurred a few weeks after the attorney general’s office did so reported a recent spike in bias incidents in New Jersey.